The Kokuryo High Murders
by rhapsodizing riyoko
Summary: COMPLETED!With their new member, Shizuko, Class Q takes on a murder case Someone is killing students at Kokuryo High Kyu, Meg, Ryuu and Shizuko go undercover to investigateWill they crack the case? There's only ONE ANSWER!
1. A High School Tragedy

**Haha! Riyoko is finally back, with another DDSQ fanfic! Sorry, it took a while, you guys, itwas hard to plan out this murder. Yeah, that's right, a _murder_. HAHA! I am just too brilliant, aren't I? (JOKE!) **

**Let's see, some clarifications before I begin my story:**

**1. Some of the names you might find here might be a little familiar…well, that's because I kind of, erm, _recycled_ them from some of the episodes of DSQ. I'm sorry! It's hard to think up Japanese names, and my "wonderful" classmate has neglected to give me the list of Japanese names that she promised me! **

**And by the way, I SUCK at making up Japanese names. **

**2. My OC, Shizuko, will be back in this fanfic, and she's still in Class Q. (If any of you don't know her, refer to my first fanfic, The Specter at Hashimoto Manor.)Uh, yeah. –grins sheepishly- And, uhm, well…some people might think that I'm trying to pair her up with Ryuu…and, ehm…(well, you COULD be right.) well, I still don't know whether I will be doing that. I do want her to, but then, some people like Meg/Ryuu…-gulps- I'm worried about people pelting me with hate mail for my stories…yeah, but well, it's MY fanfic! Does anyone have a problem with that? –death glares-**

**And in case anyone truly wants to know, well, I'm a Meg/Kyu person. Sorry, Meg/Ryuu fans. (I simply must delete the meg/ryuu pairing in my bio. But, well, maybe not. I'll try to keep an open mind.)**

**3. Expect some meg-kyu fights….and I'll try to squeeze in some sappiness between them, if you wish. **

**4. I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q. **

**Oh, yeah, and sorry for the long intro.

* * *

**

**The Kokuryo High Murders**

By Rhapsodizing Riyoko (YEAH, that's me.)

**Chapter 1: A High School Tragedy**

It was bright and early at Dan Detective School. The old school building, on the far side of the grounds, looked peaceful and tranquil.

"_KYUUUUU!"_

Or not.

Don't let appearances fool you. Within its shabby walls, that old house was bustling with activity.

Of course, with Class Q staying there, what else did you expect? Anything that involved the "Qualified" class at DDS was bound to be interesting.

And today, that would be no exception.

"Really, Kyu, you can be such a pervert!"

"But Meg, I—"

"No 'buts', Kyu! I can't believe you did it again, you…"

In one corner, Kyu and Meg were having their usual argument, Meg having the upper hand. She was yelling about their past cases, and…_underwear?_

Oh, no.

Kazuma, being a computer programming genius, found it all ridiculous.

"Don't they ever stop bickering?" he muttered to himself as his fingers drummed out a steady rhythm on the laptop he carried everywhere with him.

"Well, those two lovebirds are meant for each other, all right," said Kinta, grinning.

Fortunately for him, Meg was too busy yelling at Kyu to pay attention to his comment. And even if she HAD heard it, well, Kinta would just try to avoid her blows at him, since he proclaimed himself to be a martial arts expert.

As for Ryuu, he was standing by the window in his customary gray sweatshirt, staring into space with a serious look on his face. As always, he looked quite detached from reality. However, behind that mask of quietness was a mind filled with thoughts that an ordinary fourteen-year-old could never fathom.

The newest member of Class Q, Shizuko, was sitting quietly at her desk in her usual gray slacks and black sleeveless shirt, reading a book. For some reason, she preferred to wear pants instead of the usual short skirt that most girls wore.

Little did she know that that was about to change.

Mr. Hongou's voice jolted them all back to earth.

"Class Q!" he barked. "Principal Dan wants to see you!"  
At these words, Kyu and Meg stopped fighting, Kazuma closed his laptop, Kinta began straightening out his jacket, Ryuu snapped back to reality, and Shizuko immediately put down the book she had been engrossed in.

They all stood up respectfully as their principal, Dan Morihiko, wheeled himself into their classroom. Although he was confined to a wheelchair, his handicap did nothing to keep him from being one of the best private detectives in Japan.

He faced them. "Good morning, Class Q. We received a disturbing message today about a murder that happened recently at a high school."

Everyone exchanged glances. Kyu's eyes widened. "A murder?"

"Yes. I would like you all to come into my office for the rest of the details."  
Class Q stood up. "Yes, sir!"

* * *

In his office, Principal Dan began showing them images on the large screen in his office.

A photograph of a pretty girl lit up the screen.

"This is Makoto, a high school student at Kokuryo High School."

The screen went blank for a second as the slide show progressed.

"Two days ago, she was found dead in her room at the girls dormitories."  
The screen brightened again, this time showing a decidedly gruesome scene. A crime scene photograph of the same girl, with slashes all over her arms and chest. Her wrists were sliced open, and a pool of blackened blood had flowed from the gaping wounds.

Kyu cringed, and Meg shut her eyes to block out the sight. However, alas, her photographic memory would definitely make sure that she would remember this for the rest of her life.

Kazuma, on the other hand, put on a brave face, as Kinta made a face that could have been of either disgust or shock.

Ryuu, calm and collected as always, didn't react at all, while Shizuko winced at the sight. This was the first time she encountered a dead body.

Another photograph replaced the grisly scene, this time a photo of a computer screen.

"The killer left a message on the computer in her room," continued Principal Dan. "And this, in particular, made DDS concerned."

"This is just the beginning. It's about time that people like her got what they deserved. She struts around this school like she owns the place, having power to put us down. I've had enough. Now, who's next?" read Ryuu.

"Somebody with a grudge, perhaps?" suggested Shizuko.

"Well, it is obvious that this killer is not going to stop, and there are more people waiting in line. The police could not find any clues to the identity of the killer. Not a trace. This killer plans ahead. He's well-organized." Principal Dan turned to them.

"Class Q, I would like you to go undercover at this high school. Find out who's planning these killings. He or she must be stopped. Kyu, Meg, Ryuu, and...Shizuko. I want the four of you on this case."

"What about me?" asked Kinta.

"You're too old, Kinta," said Kazuma.

"That's right, but in the same way, you're too young to go undercover there, Kazuma," said Principal Dan.

Kazuma looked dejected, but replied, "I understand."  
"Class Q, are you ready?"

"Yeah!" chorused Class Q.

* * *

"Stop fidgeting," said Kyu.

"I can't help it. I hate skirts like this," muttered Shizuko.

"You look okay," assured Meg.

"But I don't feel okay," said Shizuko with a pout.

"Shh," said Ryuu.

DDS had provided them with the Kokuryo High uniforms, so that (duh!) they could blend in with the rest of the students. However, the uniform featured an article of clothing that Shizuko disliked.

The short skirt.

What a nightmare.

Shizuko sighed heavily. _I hate this uniform, _she thought irritably. _Unfortunately, I can't back out of this. In fact, I don't _want_ to. I really want to investigate this case. No matter what. _

Right now, they were in in the principal's office.

"So you're the transfer students, eh?" the principal said.

"Yes, sir," said Ryuu.

"Well, the two girls"—he indicated Meg and Shizuko—"have a music class together, while you boys"—he pointed at Ryuu and Kyu—" have a science class to attend, if I'm not mistaken. Here are your schedules, where you'll find your timetables, your classes, and their respective rooms, and your teachers. My secretary can take you to your first class and introduce you, but after that, you will have to get through the rest of the day on your own."

"Is everything clear? Good."

"Class, some new students have arrived. Please welcome Megumi and Shizuko."

The teacher turned to them, holding some files in her hand. Apparently, she had been given files on both of them, and she had finished skimming them.

"I'm Ms. Osigawa. You may sit down anywhere you prefer. There are several empty seats."  
Shizuko nodded, and Meg smiled at the teacher.

As they chose their seats, Meg took in the atmosphere of the room. _Some of them seem a bit unfriendly, _she thought, taking a seat in the third row.

Shizuko, on the other hand, took a seat in the back. _This way, I can see everything without being obvious,_ she decided.

Ms. Osigawa began her lesson, beginning with a lengthy discussion on the history of orchestra, the first musical performers, and some references to theater arts.

Time ticked by slowly as the lecture droned on.

When she reached the topic on instruments of orchestra, she pointed out the different instruments lined up around the room. Picking up each one, she demonstrated how it was played and a brief history of its origin.

Suddenly the teacher turned to Shizuko. "Shizuko, I understand from your file data that you're quite a violinist."

Shizuko's eyes widened. _Oh, no. So much for not drawing attention to myself. _

Ms. Osigawa held up the said instrument. "Please demonstrate to us firsthand how the violin is properly handled and played."

It was an order, not a request. _I have no choice…_

"Yes, ma'am," Shizuko replied, standing up. _I can't believe that little tidbit was included in my file data. _

As she passed the third row, she discreetly cast a worried glance at Meg. Meg gave her the smallest of shrugs.

Sighing, Shizuko too the violin from the teacher and carefully tucked it under her chin. Taking a deep breath, she began playing a dramatic and powerful tune.

Immediately, she was swept into the music, not caring about the eyes that were staring at her. She could hear the teacher making comments on her fingerings and the resonance of the soundwaves inside the sound box, but it seemed quite far away.

Meg was paying attention to the lesson, but at the same time, she was thinking. _I've heard this piece before. It's _The Evil Trembles_. Ryuu, Kyu and I listened to Maestro Masaome play this. She doesn't play as powerfully, yeah, but she's good. _

Shizuko's eyes were closed, and her brow was furrowed, obviously concentrating. Finishing the piece, she hastily—but carefully—put down the violin.

Everybody was quiet as Shizuko walked back to her seat.

The teacher continued her lesson, but it was obvious that everyone was a bit moved by the performance.

The bell suddenly rang, indicating that class was over. As Ms. Osigawa dismissed the class, they snapped their attention back to their things and began leaving the classroom.

Shizuko began gathering her things as well. As she did so, someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"What?" she muttered, turning around, expecting to see Meg.

Instead, she found herself staring into an unfamiliar face, framed by blond hair. Ice blue eyes peered out from beneath light-colored lashes.

_Whoa,_ Shizuko thought to herself.

The blond boy held out his hand. "I'm Rei. Rei Takahashi. You're…Shizuko, am I right?"

She snapped back to reality and shook his hand. "Yes. What do you want?"

"Nothing, really. I merely wanted to compliment you on your violin playing. You're quite talented."

"Oh. Thank you," Shizuko replied.

Rei nodded, and then left the classroom withouot another word.

That caused Shizuko to raise an eyebrow. _He's strange._

Meg came up to her. "Who was that?"

"His name is Rei, and apparently, he's a mystery man," said Shizuko carelessly.

"I think he likes you," teased Meg.

"Don't be ridiculous," said Shizuko. "What makes you think that?"

"He was staring at you during your violin performance."

"I doubt that he likes me. Staring at someone doesn't mean that that person likes that someone." Shizuko spoke as though that settled the matter.

"So why are you blushing?" asked Meg mischievously.

"I'm not blushing," Shizuko muttered as a tinge of pink blossomed on her pale cheeks.

Little did they know that their little conversation had taken them out all the way into the hall. They unexpectedly bumped into Ryuu and Kyu as the two boys were having their own little colloquy.

"Oh, sorry—Kyu! Ryuu!" exclaimed Meg.

"Hi, you guys," said Shizuko.

"Hi," answered Ryuu.

"Why are you blushing, Shizuko?" asked Kyu.

"I am NOT blushing, Kyu," insisted Shizuko. "What about you? Why do you have soot on your face?"

"Uh, well, that's, uhm…well, you see..."

"He made something explode in the science lab by adding the wrong chemical at the wrong time," explained Ryuu.

"Very nice, Kyu," said Meg sarcastically.

Now it was Kyu's turn to blush. "Well, anyone can make a mistake!"

"Okay, then. What class do you guys have next?" asked Shizuko.

"Mathematics," replied Ryuu.

"History," said Meg.

"I've got History too," said Kyu cheerfully.

"Math," mumbled Shizuko.

"It looks like we have class at the same time, then. Let's go," said Ryuu.

She nodded, relieved that her earlier blush had faded from her cheeks.

"I'll see you guys later, okay?" she told Meg and Kyu.

"Sure," said Kyu.

"Bye!" said Meg.

* * *

**rants: **yeah, my new fanfic is crappy, as usual...  
i suck at writing.  
**chapter 2: Mathematics and Murders  
PLEASE REVIEW!  
tell me whether you like how i started it...is it interesting? and by the way, it will not end up Shizuko/Rei. ****  
**


	2. Mathematics and Introductions

**Yes, the next chapter.**

**And I'm not doing too well, this is starting to sound like "The Collector", minus the snuff movies.**

**Random babblings of the moment: AAH, the roses in my room are wilting! noo….oh, man…. **

**I love roses….except for black ones. _–shudders- _does everyone remember the scene in DSQ where Anubis visits Ryu in the hospital and gives him black roses? Ooh, that was so spine-tingling. **

**Waaah, I had to change the chapter title…the "murders" part will be in a later chapter….**

**Oh well, that's all. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 2: Mathematics and Introductions**

"Hey! You're new here, aren't you?"

Ryuu looked up from the Mathematics book he had laid out on his desk. "Yes, I am."

A dark-haired boy grinned at him. "Nice to meet you, then. My name's Musashi. What's yours?"

"Ryuu. Ryuu Amakusa."

"Cool. Say, are you good at Trigonometry?"

"I have some skill in solving. And I'm well-versed in mathematics."

"Oh, you must be pretty good. You like math?"

"I'm okay at it. It's the same in every language, after all."

"Whoa. That's deep. How do you know that?"

"I used to study in New York. I came here to Japan several months ago."

"Oh."

"Hm." Ryuu went back to reading his book, while Musashi came up to another student.

* * *

"Hi! Are you new here?" 

Shizuko turned around. A red-headed girl smiled cheerfully at her. Two other girls, who appeared to be her friends, stood behind her.

"Uh..yeah. I am."  
The girl extended her hand. "I'm Sumika. And you are?"

Shizuko shook the girl's hand. "I'm Shizuko. Nice to meet you."

"Same here. Oh, and these are my friends, Momoko, and Mayumi."

The two students smiled at her.

"Hi," said Shizuko.

Mayumi moved closer to Shizuko. "So tell us, what's your relation to the blue-haired guy you came in with? What's his name?"

"Oh, you mean Ryuu. Well, he and I just happened to transfer at the same time, that's all."

"Really? And you're not…close or anything, are you?"

"Uh…"

Fortunately, the professor strode in at that moment, saving Shizuko from making up an excuse to prevent from answering Mayumi's prying question.

"Settle down, class, Trigonometry is now in session."

Everyone scrambled into their seats, and as for Shizuko, she wound up in a seat next to Ryuu in the second row.

Clearly audible sighs of disappointment rose from the lovesick girls in the classroom, and Shizuko could feel death-glares at her back.

_Just great. Now the girls will hate me forever. Ryuu has no idea what effect he has on girls._

For some odd reason, Ryuu sensed her discomfort. "What's wrong?" he whispered quietly.

"Nothing, I was just thinking of something. We can talk later."

"Is it about the case?"  
"It's not that relevant."

"You two!"

Ryuu and Shizuko looked up to see and annoyed-looking boy glaring at them. "There's a lesson going on, can't you see that?"

"Sorry," said Shizuko.

"You can save your little conversations for after class, you know! Or if you think you're so smart, then why don't you answer the problem on the board?That is, if you've been following the lesson the prof has been discussing!"

Shizuko clenched her fists tightly. She was getting mad at this kid. _Who does he think he is?_

Incoherent murmurs broke out among the class.

However, at that point, Shizuko found herself glaring at the boy, then standing up to answer that stupid trigonometry question.

To her surprise(and the girls' excitement) Ryuu followed suit.

Ignoring the taunts, whispers, and above all, sighs of infatuated girls, she picked up the chalk and turned her attention to the problem on the board. Next to her, she could hear Ryuu scratching out a solution on his side of the board.

A minute and several diagrams later, she dropped her chalk into the chalk tray and muttered, "Done."

At the same time, Ryuu said, "I'm finished."

The rest of the class stared at the meticulous sets of numbers. However, both yielded the same answer.

They turned to the professor, who was polishing his glasses absently on his shirt. When he put them back on, he gazed at the two solutions. "Well, you both have the correct answer, albeit using different methods of solving. You both got it right. Excellent work."

The annoying kid who suggested that they answer the question on the board was dumbfounded. His jaw dropped open. More whispers broke out among the class, most prominent among the girls.

_Raving about Ryuu's brilliance, I bet,_ thought Shizuko perceptively.

Sumika tapped her on the shoulder as she sat down. "Hey, you're good!"  
Shizuko shrugged. "It was nothing, I guess. I like math. By the way, who was that guy who was mad at us?"

"Oh, that's Mei. He's a smart kid, but pretty obnoxious. He prides himself on being one of the only ones who can follow the prof's lectures without falling asleep."

"Then Ryuu could probably give him a run for his money," Shizuko thought aloud.

Sumika thought to herself. "Hmm, maybe you're right. He's so smart, and pretty cute, too. Don't you think so?"

"Uhm…" Shizuko was speechless for the moment, watching Ryuu take notes.

"Well, he could hear you, you know," she replied, changing the subject.

"Ooh, you like him, don't you?"

"No! At least, I don't think I do…"

"No? You don't?" Sumika looked doubtful.

Shizuko shook her head. "No. Definitely."

"That's interesting." Sumika laughed. "You're different."

* * *

After class, Shizuko caught up with Ryuu in the corridor. "Hey," she said. 

"Hmm?" said Ryuu.

"Have you seen Meg and Kyu yet?"

"Actually, here they come right now."

Shizuko turned around to see Meg stomping angrily down the hall and Kyu chasing after her.

"I'm guessing that History class didn't go so well," said Shizuko when Meg caught up with them.

"Oh, no, History was fine. It was what happened _after_ class that didn't go as well," replied Meg in an annoyed tone.

Shizuko turned to Kyu. "What did you do?"

"Me! Why is it always me?" asked Kyu.

"Because it _is_ always you. Did you peek at her panties again?"

"Oh, yeah, they had pink bunnies on them today—OW!"

Meg whacked Kyu on the head. "He saw them when I stood and bent over to pick up my school bag."

"And blurted it out for the rest of the class to hear?" asked Shizuko.

"Precisely."

"Oh, no."

Shizuko rolled her eyes. "Well, since I have History class next, I think I should go now…"

"Yeah," said Ryuu.

"Bye," said Kyu, while rubbing the lump that had formed from when Meg had punched him.

"See you, then," said Meg.

* * *

**rants: **well, this wasn't too bad…I re-uploaded the chapter because I made a terrible mistake in here…  
anyway…  
**PLEASE REVIEW!  
****Chapter 3: Trouble Brews in History  
**Expect a little shizuko/ryu here….  
and I'll expect some hate mail.  
_-hides-_


	3. Trouble Brews in History

**Uh, yeah, the next chapter. **

**As I said before, expect a little shizuko/ryu-ness. **

**I'm such a weird writer…I've got the beginning all right, and I've actually already written the ending! But the middle part needs work. Ugh. **

**DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 3: Trouble Brews in History**

_My first subject alone,_ Shizuko thought to herself.

"Hey! Shizuko!"

She turned around. "Oh. Hi, Sumika."

The redhead grinned. "I saw you talking to Ryuu earlier."

"Oh, that. It wasn't much."

"Really? Ooh, the girls are going to be so mad at you..."

"I doubt it. What, do they own him now? Do they have a warrant out for my arrest?"

Sumika laughed. "You're funny, you know that?"

The professor walked in, but the class was too busy talking to acknowledge his presence.

"CLASS!" the teacher bellowed.

Everyone immediately stopped whatever they were doing, and there was some confusion as they all struggled to find a seat.

"Is THIS the way my class behaves when I'm not around? Just for that, I'll give you the pop quiz that I had intended for tomorrow!"

The whole class groaned.

"Don't 'aww' me!" the professor said as he opened his desk drawer and took out a sheaf of papers.

_Whoa. Harsh. And I thought Mr. Hongou was bad, _Shizuko thought.

The teacher began distributing the quiz. Shizuko quickly took out hr pen and scribbled down her answers.

"What's the answer to this one?" someone whispered behind her.

"It's.." some one else answered.

"Is question number six true or false?" another person asked.

"It's a multiple choice question, dummy, and the answer is 'c'," muttered the first voice.

_Cheaters, _Shizuko thought. _It doesn't take a genius to figure that out._

Standing, she picked up her finished quiz and went to the front under the pretense of submitting her work to the prof.

As she handed over her paper, she whispered, "Sir, the three people behind me were cheating."

"Them again! That's about the second time this week. I'll take care of that. And thank you."

Shizuko walked back to her seat. As she sat down, she heard the teacher's voice holler again. "Shinji Nogisaka! And you two! Gou! Keisuke!"

The three boys looked up with feigned innocence.

"Yes, Professor?" the one named Shinji asked naively.

"You and your friends were sharing answers during the exam! I would have been happy to overlook it, but thanks to a brave soul, I found out about it. You three have detention! For two weeks!"

"What the—?" Shinji sputtered. "When I find out who told the prof…"

Shizuko retained her emotionless aura. _At least the prof didn't mention my name._

Although she assured herslf that she was most likely safe, she could feel death-glares at her back again.

* * *

As soon as the bell rang for their break, Shizuko strode as quickly as she could out the door and across the grounds. She looked around, but none of her DDS classmates were in sight. 

_I'm on my own again,_ she thought worriedly.

She kept her pace, and she came to a secluded area. No student was in sight.

"Hey you! You with the glasses!"

_Oh no,_ she thought. _This cannot be good._

Shinji Nogisaka and his two cronies were standing behind her.

"What do you want, then?" Shizuko asked, matching their toughness.

Shinji stepped toward her threateningly. "You're a new kid, right? You told the prof that we were cheating during the exam, didn't you?"

"And if I did?"

"Then you're in big trouble, then. Nobody messes with us. "

"Then I'm nobody then. And since that's what I am, there's nothing you can do to me."

The bully looked bewildered for a second. "Are you trying to confuse me, newbie?"  
"You figure it out, cheater. Or do you need one of your cronies to explain things for you?"

Shinji started getting mad. "You're messing with the wrong bully, girlie."

"Oh, so should I just mess with your other cronies instead?" said Shizuko sarcastically.

Shinji suddenly swung his fist at her, but Shizuko was too fast. She ducked out of the way.

_This is definitely not good. I can't defend myself because of this uniform!_

"What, are you running away now?" Shinji taunted her.

In answer, Shizuko stomped on his foot. Hard.

"Ow!"

Shizuko tried to run, but one of Shinji's cronies grabbed her and held her by both arms.

_Darn!_ Shizuko thought.

"That's right, hold her, Keisuke," said Shinji. He balled his hand into a fist and aimed at her dead-on. "Now, you pay."

Shizuko closed her eyes for the impact…

…it didn't come.

She cautiously opened one eye. A certain blue-haired boy had Shinji's fist in one hand, preventing Shinji from hitting her.

She sighed in relief. _Ryuu!_

Shinji looked aghast for a moment as Ryuu turned his arm in a judo twist.

Recovering, though, Shinji swung his other fist at Ryuu.

He missed Ryuu by inches.

"Get him, guys!" ordered Shinji.

Keisuke, the boy holding Shizuko, roughly threw her aside, causing her to fall on the cemented ground.

And, considering that she landed mostly on her elbow, the roughness of the pavement tore right through the cloth on her sleeve and caused several deep abrasions on her arm.

"Oww!" cried Shizuko in pain. But she could do nothing as Ryuu was surrounded by the three boys.

Shinji's two followers began swinging their fists at Ryuu, but he dodged them all, and in a split second, he went right for Shinji and threw him to the ground.

Before Shinji could react properly, Ryuu's hand was at his throat.

"You're such a coward, attacking a girl. I can tear your throat out right now." Ryuu's words came out like bullets, his voice cold as steel.

"If you do that again…"

Ryuu's fingers tightened around Shinji's throat, as if to illustrate his point.

Shizuko watched as Shinji's eyes contracted in fear.

"Got it?" said Ryuu threateningly.

Shinji nodded, unable to speak, since Ryuu's fingers were pressing slightly on his windpipe.

As soon as Ryuu let go of him, Shinji got up and ran, along with his friends, towards the school building.

Ryuu turned to Shizuko. "Are you all right?" The harshness that had been in his voice earlier was gone, and he sounded more like himself again.

Shizuko nodded, Yeah, thanks to you."

He helped her up. Taking notice of her scraped elbow, he touched it gently. "Does it hurt much?"

Shizuko sighed and rubbed the torn, frayed sleeve between her fingers. "It's just a scratch. I'm fine. Those guys were jerks, though…"

"What did you do to them?" asked Ryuu.

"I told the professor that they were cheating during the exam," Shizuko answered. "And this is where they caught me."  
"You did what was right," said Ryuu.

"Yes, I know." She looked back at him. "Thanks a lot. Sorry if caused you any trouble, though."

Ryuu shook his head. "It was nothing."

As if on cue, the bell rang.

Ryuu looked at her. "I guess it's time to get back to class."

"Yeah. Where are Meg and Kyu?"

"I'm sure we'll meet them sooner or later."

They walked together towards the school building. Ryuu never broke his stride, walking confidently across the grounds. Shizuko had to walk a little faster to catch up and match his pace. "What class do you have next?" Ryuu asked.

"Arts, I think."

"Look, its Meg and Kyu," said Ryuu suddenly.

Shizuko turned in the direction Ryuu indicated. Meg seemed to be in a much better mood at the moment, most probably because Kyu hadn't done anything rude or something of the sort.

"Hi!" Meg called out cheerfully as the two groups met.

"Hi," said Ryuu.

"What happened to your sleeve, Shizuko?"asked Meg in concern.

"It's nothing. I just got into a little bit of trouble, that's all," replied Shizuko.

"What kind of trouble?" asked Kyu.

"Some bullies tried to pound me because I told the professor that they cheated during the exam."

"So what's that, a battle scar?"

"Uh,no. I didn't have a chance to use martial arts."

"How'd you get away?" asked Meg.

Shizuko glanced at Ryuu.

"Aah…" said Kyu. "Now I get it."  
Ryuu just waved it off. "It's nothing. We'd better get back to our classes, though."

Meg nodded. "Yeah. Did any of you realize how huge this school is?"

"Uh-huh, they've got a lot of facilities," answered Shizuko as they began walking.

"Yes, not only do they have the classrooms, but there are ultra-modern labs, well-stocked libraries, swimming pools, gymnasiums, and even rooms for the teachers and students."

"And I bet we'll be staying in those rooms," said Kyu.

"Yeah, we will be, and each room comes with a computer that has internet access and networking properties, so everyone's connected to one another," said Meg.

"You got that from the brochure, didn't you?" said Shizuko.

"Well, yeah, I did. Photographic memory," explained Meg.

"At least with those computers, we'll be able to communicate with one another, as well as Kinta and Kazuma," said Ryuu thoughtfully.

"Yeah, that is right," said Kyu.

Their conversation had already taken them into the school building, and they went their separate ways to get to their individual classes.

* * *

**Rants: **yes, I know, this chapter is waaay too shizuko/ryu. Are you all mad at me? awww…. please don't hate me, I tried my best! 

And don't worry, you will all understand why shizuko is the way she is when I finish my third fanfic, **Pluto Returns!**

I've gotten comments saying that shizuko is a lot like ryu. And you are kind of right. But it will all be explained in **Pluto Returns!** I promise. It will all make sense soon…

**PLEASE REVIEW!**

**Chapter 4: Messages and Meetings**

**I will write again soon. I promise. Review classes for college entrance exams really sucked time out of my typing up the fanfic. **

But being in the classes encourages my mind to work, and I usually get more inspiration when I'm busy. NOT. Hehe. Joke. But I still love to write DSQ fanfics.


	4. Messages and Meetings

**The next chapter. Yeah, I know that you people are ready to kill me because some of you want the next chapter of "Pluto returns!". Well, I hope this will at least keep you guys occupied while I'm still thinking.**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Detective School Q.

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**

**Chapter 4: Messages and Meetings**

Kyu was feeling drowsy. The teacher was giving a boring, humdrum lesson on Leonardo Da Vinci's art during the Renaissance. That, combined with the lulling heat of the sinking afternoon sun, was making Kyu's eyelids droop ever-so–slowly….

**_RIIIIINNNG!  
_**Kyu snapped to attention. "Wha—?"

Blinking, he saw the rest of his classmates gather their things and walk out the door, chattering away.

_Oh, right, class is over,_ Kyu thought. _And since Arts is my last subject…._

He grinned to himself. _I can finally meet up with Meg and the others! _

He smiled again as he thought of Meg, with her cheerful pink hair and happy smile. Although sometimes, that smile would turn into a glare when he, er, _accidentally_ peeked under her skirt.

It was unusual for him to be this preoccupied with thoughts, and little did he know that this particular string of contemplation had taken him all the way out into the schoolyard.

"Kyu!" someone called.

He turned toward the voice. "Oh! Hey there, Meg!"

Meg's pink pigtails bobbed up and down as she ran to him. "Hi!"

Kyu grinned. "Have you seen Ryuu?"

"Well, he's on his way. Look, he's over there," said Meg, pointing.

Ryuu caught up to them. "Hi, guys."

Meg smiled. "That just leaves Shizuko."

"Yeah, where is she?" asked Kyu.

"I think that's her, over there, by the tree," said Meg.

A few meters away, Shizuko was setting down her school bag by a tree in the schoolyard.

"Oh, there she is. She's sitting down…but who's that?" asked Kyu as a blonde boy came up to Shizuko.

"That's one of our classmates in Music. She met him this morning."

Ryuu watched as Shizuko greeted the boy with a small smile. "She's not that interested in the boy as much as he is drawn to her."  
"How can you tell that, Ryuu?" asked Kyu curiously.

"Observe their gestures. She's slouching, subconsciously forming a barrier around herself, focused on something else she's doing. He's leaning towards her, as though fascinated by her, observing her."

"Hey, you're right."

"Hn," said Ryuu, continuing to study the exchange between Shizuko and the strange boy.

* * *

Shizuko was bent over her a drawing in her lap.

"What are you doing?" asked Rei as he leaned towards her, trying to see her work.

"My art project," she said simply.

"Really. So you're not just a musician, you're an artist as well."

"Uhm, well…" Shizuko paused in her sketching. "I'm not that good in Art. I rarely get a good drawing."

"Can I see it?" asked Rei.

"I'm not sure…it's not even finished."

"Let me see," he said, carefully taking her hand and pushing it slowly out of the way.

Shizuko sighed and uncovered the drawing.

"Who's that?" Rei asked.

"A friend of mine," Shizuko said.

"You're good at sketching."

"No, not really. This is one of those rare drawings I get."

"Say what you like. You're talented."

Rei looked at his watch. "I have to go now, though." He got up. "Keep practicing. You'll get better."

He walked away, his blonde hair with a slight orange glow in the rays of the afternoon sun.

* * *

Shizuko shook her head and stared at her drawing again. "How could he possibly think this was good?" she muttered to herself.

"Hey Shizuko!" a voice yelled.

She looked up in surprise. "Kyu," she said, startled. She stuffed her drawing out of sight, before anyone could see.

Kyu grinned at her. "Who was that guy you were talking to?"

"His name is Rei. He's in my Music class."

"Ah, so Meg was right."

"Hi, Shizuko," said Meg, who had come up behind Kyu.

"Hi, Meg," said Shizuko, getting up and brushing off the grass bits on her skirt.

Ryuu joined them. "Hi."

Shizuko smiled at him. "Hi, Ryuu."

"Well, classes are over, now. Maybe we should be getting to our rooms," said Meg.

"Oh, yeah, Sumika offered to help me find my room. Maybe you should come too, Meg," said Shizuko.

"Who's Sumika?"

"I met her in Math class. She and I also have History together as well."

"Oh, okay, then. I could use the help."

Shizuko then turned to the boys. "What about you guys?"

"Oh, we'll manage," said Ryuu.

"Uh, yeah, we'll just ask for help when we need it," said Kyu cheerfully.

"Okay. Let's go, Meg," said Shizuko.

Meg waved to the boys. "Bye."

Kyu waved back. "Bye!"

* * *

"Sumika!"

The redheaded girl turned and grinned. "Hey, Shizuko!"

Her eyes fell on Meg. "Who's your friend?"

"This is Meg. She's new here, too, like me. I thought that maybe you could help her with her room, too," replied Shizuko.

"Oh, sure, it won't be a problem. You see, my friend Momoko is in charge here, for the girl's rooms. The boy's rooms are on the other side of this building. Musashi's in charge there."

"Ah," said Shizuko. "Okay…"

"Yeah, so..." Sumika grinned. "Let's go, then! Your names are usually on the door, it's just a case of finding them."

"Shouldn't we wait for Momoko?" asked Meg.

"Oh, yeah! Well, I'll just take you to her room so that she can help you guys."

Sumika began skipping down the hallway.

"She seems nice," remarked Meg.

"Yeah, pretty much. Let's hope she's still as nice when we start asking stuff about the murder here," said Shizuko in an undertone as they follwed Sumika along several corridors.

Sumika stopped in front of a door and knocked. "Momoko! It's Sumika!"

A dark-haired girl opened the door. "What?"

With a flourish, Sumika said, "the new students need your help finding their rooms. And their keys."

"Oh, I almost forgot!" exclaimed Momoko. "They already gave me the keys, but then…"

Sumika laughed. "Busy with the computer again, huh?"  
Turning to Meg and Shizuko, she said, "Although she doesn't really look it, Momoko here is a computer whiz."

"Oh! That's nice," said Meg.

"Yeah, well…" Momoko trailed off. "I'll just shut down my computer, then I'll be back with you guys."

She shut the door.

* * *

A couple of beeps and a whirring sound later, Momoko began leading them down the corridors. "What's your name again?" she asked Meg.

"Megumi Minami."

"Oh, okay. Wait. I think your room is up ahead…"

A shiny nameplate on a door caught Shizuko's eye. _Huh?_

She stopped and peered at the name engraved on it. "Makoto…" she murmured.

_That's the name of the girl who was murdered! She was in this room!_

Sumika turned to her. "Oh, you don't want to go there..."

"Oh? Why?" asked Shizuko, pretending not to know.

"The girl who used to stay there, well, she was killed recently," said Sumika sadly.

"Killed?" asked Meg, following Shizuko's lead.

"Yes, well, she was found, like, a few days ago bleeding to death, with a note on her computer saying there'd be more killings," said Momoko.

Shizuko's eyes widened, feigning innocence. "Whoa."

"Yeah," said Momoko.

"Did you know her well? Was she a friend of yours, or something?" asked Meg.

"She was my friend, a long time ago," said Sumika desolately. "At least, she was my friend until she became popular. She left our group to hang out with the trendy people."

"Oh," said Meg. "That's terrible."  
"Yes," said Sumika. She looked back at the nameplate. "Sometimes, I wonder that maybe she wouldn't have been killed if she wasn't popular, if she had stayed with us. But it doesn't matter now. What's done is done."

She motioned to Momoko, who nodded. They continued their walk down the corridor, while Shizuko and Meg exchanged glances before following.

* * *

The first thing Meg did as soosn as she got into her room was collapse on her bed.

"Boy, I haven't even started investigating yet, and I'm tired!" She closed her eyes for a moment.

Suddenly, her computer beeped, flashing a message.

"Huh?" Meg opened her eyes and sat up, confused. "Who would send me a message?"

She walked up to her computer and clicked on the message alert. "It's from Kyu!" She smiled, blushing a little. "What does he want?"  
She read the message on the screen.

_**Hey Meg!**_

_**Yeah, we found our rooms all right, and Ryuu gave me some tips on using the computer.**_

Meg rolled her eyes. "Kyu…" she muttered.

_**Anyway, I was thinking that maybe we could all meet somewhere, to talk about the case and stuff. The only question is, where? **_

_**Send me a message with an answer ASAP.**_

**_Kyu_**

Meg leaned back in her chair, thinking.

Her computer beeped again. Another message alert was winking on the screen.

"Another one?" Meg sighed, clicking on it.

It was from Shizuko.

_**Hey, you guys!**_

_**Meg, Kyu, Ryuu, I was thinking that maybe we could all meet in my room today and talk about this murder that's been going around. I know it's too soon to think about it, since we haven't done much investigating, but still, let's meet anyway. **_

_**If you're coming, reply to this message saying if you're coming or not. **_

_**Shizuko**_

Meg had to laugh at that. _What a coincidence,_ she thought.

Hitting the reply button, she typed, _Sure thing, Shizuko! We'll see you there. _

She clicked on the "send" button.

* * *

Shizuko grinned at the messages on her computer.

_**I'll be coming, then.  
**__**Ryuu**_

**_Hey! Thanks, Shizuko! I was just suggesting to Meg that we meet somewhere! I'm coming.  
_**_**Kyu**_

_**Sure thing, Shizuko! We'll see you there.  
**__**Meg**_

She leaned back in her computer chair. Thankfully, she had changed out of the uniform and into more comfortable apparel. She slipped off her eyeglasses, blinking as she did so.

The heavy scrape on her right elbow was still stinging, though, and she decided to bandage it before her DDS classmates arrived. She had brought her first-aid kit with her, since she had anticipated that her clumsiness would catch up with her sooner or later.

She bathed the wound in antseptic and applied medication. Before she could wrap the bandage, though, someone knocked on her door.

"Come in," she said distractedly. The door creaked open.

"Hi," answered a calm voice from the doorway.

Shizuko looked up. "Oh. Hi, Ryuu."  
He closed the door behind him as Shizuko tried, repeatedly, to tie the bandage around her elbow. However, the task proved to physically impossible, since her right hand could not reach her right elbow. She sighed in exasperation.

Ryuu watched with a slightly amused look on his face. "Let me help you, then."

"No, it's okay…" Shizuko began.

But Ryuu was already there, knotting the bandage around her arm. "There."

"Thanks."

She opened her mouth to say something else, but a rap on the door interrupted what she was about to say.

She looked at Ryuu. "I'd…I'd better get that."  
She opened the door to find Meg grinning there. "Hi!"

"Hi, Meg. Is Kyu with you?"

"No, he said he'd catch up."

"Oh."

"Hey! Meg!" called a very familiar voice from the corridor.

"That'll be Kyu," said Ryuu, who had come up behind Shizuko.

Kyu reached Shizuko's open door. "Hey!"

"Looks like we're all here, then," said Shizuko.

"Hey, I noticed earlier…Shizuko, why aren't you wearing your glasses?" asked Meg.

"Huh? I'm not?" she scanned the room, and her eyes caught sight of her glasses sitting at the computer table.

"Oops," she said.

"You don't really need to wear glasses, don't you?"

"Uhm, well, not really. They do have a weak grade, though, to help with my slight nearsightedness. But you're right, I didn't need to wear them."

"So why did you?" asked Meg.

"I don't know, I wanted to hide behind them, I guess."

"You look better without them."

"Thanks," Shizuko said smiling shyly.

Kyu coughed quietly to get their attention. "Ahem."

Meg and Shizuko looked at him. Ryuu snapped out of his realm of thoughts. He had been staring quietly into space while Meg and Shizuko were having their conversation.

Kyu grinned. "We've got a case, right?"  
"Oh, yeah," said Shizuko.

"Has anyone actually been able to find out anything about the victim?" asked Ryuu.

"Well, Shizuko's friend, Sumika, had a connection with the victim. Sumika and Makoto were friends before," said Meg.

"Well, Makoto was popular, or so I heard," said Shizuko. "I think we've reached a stalemate, you guys."

"She's right," said Ryuu. "It's a deadlock. We can't make a move on our killer, since we have nothing to go on."  
Ryuu stared into space again. "Right now, all we can do is wait. I'm afraid we'll only find out something when it happens. Our killer has to make the first move."

"And then," said Shizuko, "We can do our job."

* * *

**rants: **hmm. Can't seem to make things move along too well, but it'll get better.  
**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	5. Murder at Midnight

**Er, the fifth chap.**

**anyway, some replies for my reviewers…**

**Yunnie yuae: I know, it seems that shizu is getting obessed with ryu. Well, I'm trying my best not to let it go too far. I really don't think I can let ryu have feelings for her, if I don't want any hate mail hitting me. but I'm glad you don't mind my putting them together at times. **

**Kazumi Kairi or Kairi-chan: well, you're right, shizuko doesn't really like being in the center of attention. And, uhh, rei is kinda getting attatched to her, but maybe in just a friendly way…**

**Neurotic Onna: my faithful reviewer! I thank you for always being one of my reviwers, for not hating me, and for supporting the shizu/ryu pairing! **

**Psychedelic aya : another faithful reviewer! One of my first friends here on Have I ever thanked you for always reviewing and answering my queries? If not, well...THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU!**

**Mizuki andrea: yay. Thanks!**

**Lalalalala: well, I'm not sure either where I got the name "kokuryo"…I think I got it off "Hungry Heart". Oh well. That name was lurking somewhere in my brain anyway.**

**Amanda: well, I'm not going to make PG-13 or R-rated fics anyway, so you can continue to enjoy reading my fics…**

**Ballet kitty: thanks. Glad you like my fics. **

**Angelica: well, I usually do the meg/kyu pairing…I don't know if I really will push through with pairing shizu/ryu. **

**Fauna-chan: wow. Thanks. **

**Well, this chapter will, for sure, will make people kill me. but, I hope you'll be merciful enough not to. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

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**Chapter 5: Murder at Midnight**

Later that night, Shizuko was hard at work on her drawing again. She had thrown out her first one, the one that Rei had seen. For all her hard work, all she had accomplished were several crumpled pieces of paper littering her desk and eventually dropping to the floor.

"Iiie," she grumbled as she rejected yet another draft.

She crumpled it into a ball and threw it towards the dustbin.

The paper ball missed the mouth of the trash can by several inches.

Shizuko sighed in exasperation. "Inspiration, come to me," she muttered sarcastically, praying that some muse would take pity on her and give her an idea. ANY IDEA.

She tapped her 4B pencil on the table. "There HAS to be something I can draw," she said to herself.

Shizuko yawned and rolled up the long sleeve of her black t-shirt to check her watch. (hmm, she seems to have a lot of black shirts.) "12: 23. I can't believe this," she mumbled, burying her face in her arms.

She was on the verge of falling asleep when she heard a thump in the corridor. A strange, muffled sort of thump.

Shizuko snapped to attention, adrenaline rushing to her limbs. _What was that?_ She thought.

Alert now, she stood up and reached for her doorknob. As she opened it, her fingers pressed on the light switch, flicking the lights off.

_Bad idea,_ she thought immediately afterward. The hallway was pitch black, and she was completely surrounded by darkness. She blinked, forcing her eyes to adjust to the sudden absence of light.

Footsteps were treading carefully somewhere at the end of the corridor. Someone was sneaking around.

Shizuko's heart was pounding. It was either her fear of the dark kicking in, or her dread at meeting someone—possibly the killer—in the shadows.

The latter proved to be the case. She resisted the urge to turn the lights on. She couldn't risk being seen.

Keeping one side of her body against the wall, she inched cautiously along the hallway. She could still hear muffled footsteps along the worn, carpeted floor. She followed the sound, being careful not to make any noise.

The footfalls stopped. Shizuko's heart skipped a beat. Had the person discovered her? She kept her hand outstretched, feeling the wall. She had reached the end of her hallway, feeling the edge of the turn.

She couldn't see anyone, as though the outline of the person had blended right into the darkness. Her pulse quickened as she began to lose her nerve. Where was the prowler? Had he stopped?

She took a breath, calming down. Stealthily, she turned the corner, keeping close to the wall.

Suddenly a hand reached out of the shadows and grabbed her wrist. Shizuko acted automatically, twisting her own wrist to grab her opponent by the hand. Whipping around, she kicked out as hard as she could towards her assailant. However, her adversary quickly evaded her attack, and turned her arm in a VERY familiar Judo twist. Shizuko's eyes widened in shock and recognition. With her free hand, she reached up to touch the person's face. _No way,_ she thought.

"Ryuu?" she asked, stunned.

The "prowler" loosened his grip. "Shizuko?"

"Yeah, it's me you've got in a very painful judo twist," muttered Shizuko with a wince.

Ryuu flushed, releasing her. "I'm sorry."

"It's all right," said Shizuko, rubbing her wrist where Ryuu had twisted it agonizingly. "Although I have to wonder: what are _you_ doing lurking in the _girl's_ dormitory? In the middle of the night, no less."

"I could ask you the same question."

"_I_ was up late working on something. I heard a thud in the corridor and came out to investigate. What's _your_ excuse?"

Ryuu sighed. "Someone made a mess in my room, and left a message on my computer. It was a prank."

He held up a transparent sheet, with a fingerprint sealed inside. "I lifted these."  
Shizuko wrinkled her eyebrows. "Why didn't you bring this up during the meeting in my room?"

"I didn't think it was pertinent," he said simply. "I think it was just focused on me, not the murder we have on our hands. It was insignificant."

"And you want to find out who did it. What kind of message was on your computer?"

"A low threat. It's not important."

"Since I'm now wide awake…do you need help?"  
"You should go back to bed."

"Do you really think that I would go back to bed with this on my mind?"

"We could get caught."

"You weren't caught, were you? And neither was I."

"I wouldn't want you to get in trouble because of me."

"We won't. You wouldn't be out here in the first place if you knew there was a risk."

_Actually, I would,_ thought Ryuu. "Well, if you're sure…let's go."

Shizuko nodded, following him quietly down the corridors.

Darkness enveloped them, ensuring that they couldn't be seen.

They continued their improvised route towards their destination.

"We're here," Ryuu said.  
Shizuko blinked. They were standing outside their Trigonometry classroom.

"I already have a suspect in mind," he said, entering the classroom unfalteringly and walking up to one of the desks.

"You've done this before," said Shizuko as she followed him.

He nodded, taking out his DDS notebook from somewhere under his shirt. He brought out the included fingerprinting set.

He handed Shizuko a cylindrical object. It was some sort of flashlight. "Shine it here."

Shizuko complied, and a red beam of light illuminated Ryuu's serious face. "Red light. Smart choice," said Shizuko.

Ryuu nodded. "It'll keep us from going blind later when the light is out."

He began dusting the desk with the fingerprint powder, causing faint outlines of prints to appear. He pressed pieces of sticky-backed plastic on the prints, lifting them off. He then compared them to the one lifted from his room.

At first he frowned, because4 the prints didn't seem to match. But then the expression on his face changed.

"So I was right."

"It's a match?" Shizuko asked, looking down at the desk.

"Yes, no doubt about it. The person who wrecked my room is—"

"Mei Akane," Shizuko finished.

Ryuu nodded. (er, how many times has he nodded in this chapter?)

"I guess he had something against you for that Trigonometry question. But he didn't do anything to me."

"He probably doesn't have access to the girl's dormitories," said Ryuu, putting away his things and wiping down the desk.

"True. Anyway, we've cleared up your little mystery, but we still have a murder to think about."

"Yes," said Ryuu. "But we'd better get back to our rooms, you most of all. I didn't mean to drag you with me here."

"It's okay," said Shizuko. "It was…interesting."

Ryuu raised his eyebrow and gave her a strange look. He took the flashlight from her hands and turned it off, shrouding them in darkness again.

Shizuko blinked. "I still can't see well," she muttered, reaching out with her hand.

A warm hand grasped her outstretched one. "I'll help you," said Ryuu.

"Can you see?"

"Probably better than you can."

"That's good enough for me."

Ryuu began leading her. "Just follow me. And try not to bump into anything," he warned.

Shizuko nodded, although she was sure that Ryuu probably couldn't even see her move her head.

She followed him quietly down several corridors, pausing at some points, where Ryuu took time to recall their path. He kept close to the wall all the while, feeling it with his free hand.

After several minutes of uncomfortable silence and occasional stumbles in the dark, Ryuu finally declared, "I think this is your hallway…"

Shizuko felt for the wall of the corridor. She recognized the grain and texture. "Yeah, this is it."

Ryuu let go of her hand. (WHAT? Only now?)

"Can you find your way from here?"

"Yes, thank you."

Ryuu tilted his head in affirmation. "Good night."

"Good night," replied Shizuko. _But it's morning,_ she thought, though not bothering to correct him.

Ryuu left her, feeling his way down the corridor to his own room.

Shizuko began her way towards her own room. _I left my door open,_ she thought. _That was dumb…_

She found her open door and slipped inside. She shut the door quietly and flicked on the light switch.

The incandescent above her flickered on, flooding the room with light and, of course, momentarily blinding her.

"Gaah," she muttered, blinking to readjust her vision.

As her sight cleared, she made a quick inventory of her room. Nothing had been disturbed, not even a single piece of littered paper.

_What was I thinking?_ She shook her head. _I'm sure that there wasn't anyone else awake except Ryuu and me…_

And with that thought, she went right to bed, tossing and turning until, exhausted, she dropped off to sleep.

* * *

Shinji Nogisaka looked at his digital alarm clock.

He had been up practically all night, watching late television shows.

"1:56. Man, it's late," he muttered.

_But who cares? I can afford to blow off a few classes, hah!_

He kept the TV on, flipping through channels as he dug through his pile of junk, looking for something edible.

His hand brushed past a half-empty bag of chips. _It'll do. _

Leaping onto his bed, which was littered with old clothes and a rumpled school uniform, he stuffed his mouth full of chips. He laughed, spraying out bits of food, as he watched a hilarious spectacle unfold on his television screen.

Someone knocked on his door.

"What the…" he switched off his television. The necklace that he wore round his neck dangled uselessly as he hoisted his behind off of his cot, and opened the door.

"What the heck do you want?" he asked irritably.

In answer, his visitor quickly shoved himself into the room and held him by the throat. Shinji choked, his eyes bulging out as he recognized his caller. "Y-you!"

An evil smile curled along his visitor's lips. "Now, it's your turn," he breathed into Shinji's ear threateningly.

He had a cord around Shinji's neck, its thick braid pressing harder on Shinji's windpipe.

Moments later, Shinji's lifeless body dropped to the floor.

All that was left of his midnight caller was an arrogant message on a bright computer screen.

* * *

"Mei Akane."

"Here."

"Ryuu Amakusa."

"Here."

"Mitsuru Asho."

"Here."

"Sumika Kanjiru."

"Here."

Roll call was taking place During their Math class.

Shizuko answered, "Here," as soon as her name was called.

"Shinji Nogisaka."

Shizuko and Ryuu exchanged glances.

"Shinji Nogisaka?"

No answer came.

The professor shook his head and continued roll call.

The lesson went on as usual.

As soon as the bell rang, Shizuko grabbed her things and went for the door. As she did so, she bumped into a girl with purple streaks in her hair.

"Hey! Watch it!" the girl said, annoyed.

"Sorry," said Shizuko.

"Watch where you're going!"

"Forget it, Mitsuru, she said she was sorry," said Sumika, coming up to the angry girl.

"What do you care?" said Mitsuru, turning on Sumika instead.

"Calm down, no need to get all stressed..."

"Stressed! Who says I'm stressed? I AM SO NOT STRESSED! Just because Makoto got to me…geez…"

The girl stomped off down the hall, muttering curses under her breath.

Shizuko raised an eyebrow at the exchange. "What's with her?"

"Ah, she's just got a bit of an attitude problem…"  
"What was the deal with Makoto?"

"Aaah…that was something that happened a long time ago. Mitsuru and Makoto were friends at one point, after Makoto left us. Anyway, even thought Makoto was seeing someone else, she put the moves on Mitsuru's boyfriend. Mitsuru caught them kissing in the janitor's closet. Needless to say, she dumped them both. Immediately."

Shizuko wanted to wince. Too much information. "Ouch," she said. _The scandals of high school._

"Who was she going out with at the time?" asked Shizuko.

"Hmm. You know what? I really don't know. Which is pretty strange, 'cause, if she were going out with someone, well, it would be all over the school in an instant. I mean, if she were going out with one of the jocks or something…"

"Maybe she wasn't going out with a jock," Shizuko suggested.

"Now THAT is impossible. Popular people do NOT date AVERAGE people. It's, like, practically a decree," said Sumika in mock horror.

_It is SO possible,_ thought Shizuko. _Although it would be hard to keep things secret in this kind of life…in any case, Mitsuru has a motive…_

She checked her watch and gave a start. "Oops, I have to go."

"You mean WE have to go. We have History together, remember?"

"Oh, yeah."

History class was no big deal for them, and the rest of the day went by without any trouble.

* * *

"This is weird," said Shizuko.

"What's weird?" asked Meg. All four of them, including Ryuu and Kyu, had gathered under a tree in the school yard.

"I mean, things are too…normal. It's a typical high school. The only thing that makes this place a little different is—"

"The murder," finished Kyu. "I noticed it too. It's like people could care less about the killings."

"Something should have happened by now. We were put on this case a few days after the death. This isn't right," said Ryuu.

"Maybe something _has _happened and we don't even know it," said Meg.

"It's hard to keep a secret in this school, and nobody knows it better than the popular kids," said Shizuko, indicating a group of girls flipping their hair and posing for jocks at a bench some distance from them.

"What makes you say that?" said Kyu.

"Everyone knows everything about the popular kids. Their life is practically an open book. Makoto was popular. Everyone knows about her death, but no one cares because her popularity was based on meanness. Same with the rest of them. Any one of them could be next, and the rest of the student body wouldn't even bat an eye. To them, it would be better if the popular bunch didn't even exist," said Shizuko.

"Do you realize what you're doing?" said Ryuu.

"What _am_ I doing?" asked Shizuko.

"You're getting into the killer's state of mind," said Ryuu. "It's entirely possible that this is a personal matter, and it concerns all notorious and popular people. The killer isn't focused on this person to person, he wants to eliminate a particular group in this school."  
"That's possible," said Kyu.

"Which means that the killings aren't random, they're planned in advance and carried out in an exacting fashion," said Meg.

Ryuu shuddered inwardly, reminded of Pluto. _No. they're gone. It's over. _

"It still doesn't make sense," said Shizuko, massaging her forehead. "Wouldn't that incriminate everyone in this school? The popular kids are repulsed and hated just as much as they are looked up to and admired."

"It would, wouldn't it?" said Kyu thoughtfully.

"This is too complicated," said Meg.

"I almost forgot. I've got someone on the suspect list," said Shizuko.

"Who?" asked Kyu.

"Her name is Mitsuru Asho. She's in my Math class. She has a grudge against the victim," said Shizuko.

"What sort of grudge?" asked Meg.

Shizuko winced. She hated having to tell the story over again.

"Well, after Sumika and Makoto's friendship came the bonding of Makoto and Mitsuru. Even though Makoto was dating someone at one point, she, er…"

"What?" asked Ryuu.

"She went for Mitsuru's boyfriend and Mitsuru caught them kissing in a janitor's closet and so she dumped them both," said Shizuko hurriedly and in one breath.

Kyu and Meg both looked embarrassed and reddened a little.

Ryuu blinked.

Shizuko sighed, exasperated. "High school scandals…"

* * *

"Shizuko! SHIZUKO!"

Shizuko turned around. Sumika was running towards her, red hair flying in the wind.

"What is it, Sumika?" she asked.

"Ah, well…" Sumika suddenly noticed Meg, Kyu and Ryuu. "Hi, Meg, Ryuu…and, uhm…" she trailed off.

"Kyu," said Kyu, grinning.

"Right, Kyu. Anyway, Shizuko, you won't believe this."

"What?" asked Shizuko.

"You guys better hear this too," Sumika said, turning to the rest of them.

"What's going on?" asked Meg.

"You won't believe this…but there's been another killing."

"WHAT?" they all asked together, incredulously.

"Who?" Shizuko demanded.

"It was…Shinji Nogisaka. The bully. He was absent this morning in math, remember?"

"And now we know why," said Ryuu.

* * *

**rants: aha! NOW something happens. The next chap will be very interesting indeed.  
****PLEASE REVIEW!  
****and don't kill me.**


	6. The Crime Scene

**An update at last! Here's yet another chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 6: The Crime Scene**

"He's dead?" Shizuko said disbelievingly.

"He is. Mei was going to confront him about something, but Shinji wouldn't even open his door. Mei went to Musashi, naturally, since he's head of the boy's dorms. When they got the door open, well…"

Sumika paused in her storytelling.

"Have the police been informed?" asked Ryuu.

"Momoko ran off to call them, and Mei and Musashi are still at Shinji's room."

"Can you take us there?" asked Kyu.

Sumika raised an eyebrow. "Sure, but it's pretty gross…"

"I want to see it as well," said Ryuu.

Sumika blinked. "Okaaaaay…"

"He's in there," said Sumika, pointing to an open door.

"Did anyone move him?" asked Shizuko.

"No. We were too disgusted to…"

Ryuu entered the room without hesitation.

Kyu followed him.

Meg screwed up her face and crossed the threshold of the room.

Taking a deep breath, Shizuko stepped into the room.

What they all saw came as a bit of a shock.

Shinji's body was lying on the floor, with a torn piece of cord around his neck. The rest of the cord had been cut from the curtain pull in the room. His eyes were bulging out from his purple face, and his tongue hung out from his mouth, which had fallen slack.

"Clever," said Ryuu. "The murderer used something of the victim's to strangle him, so that nothing would be missing from his own room. He won't be traced."

Kyu nodded, indicating that he had thought of the same thing.

"But the question is, how did the killer get in the room to cut off the cord? And then use it to strangle him? That could mean that Shinji could have simply passed out with the killer's first attack, like, say, manual strangulation as he entered the room, then using the cord as a finishing touch, a final blow," said Shizuko.

"It's plausible, but then that would mean leaving fingerprints on the victim's body, and that wouldn't be the killer's way," said Ryuu.

"He could have worn gloves," said Kyu thoughtfully.

"Hn," said Ryuu. "It is likely."

"This smell is horrid," Shizuko muttered. "How long could he have been dead?"

"Not too long, I think. A corpse that's been dead for quite a while would smell even worse," said Ryuu knowledgeably.

_I don't think I even WANT to know how he knew that,_ thought Shizuko.

"This smells even worse than the dead cat I found in the backyard a few weeks ago," Shizuko said.

Desperate for something else to look at, Meg began scanning the rest of the room, at the same time, incorporating it into her photographic memory.

Her eyes fell on the computer, which was turned on.

"Look at this," she said.

Everyone else tore their eyes away from the dead body to look at her.

"Another message?" asked Kyu.

Meg nodded vigorously.

"Same M.O.," said Ryuu seriously.

Shizuko nodded, thinking. M.O. stands for "modus operandi". It means "method of operation", and it was true that the killer had used the same method of operation, killing his victims and even leaving a message on the computer.

"What does it say?" asked Kyu.

"And so now, the hunter becomes the hunted," Meg began. "The bully is finally dead. How long did he torture us? How long was he allowed to abuse his power and make us bow to his brawn, his strength? Well, here he is, lying before you. Is this someone to fear? Is this someone who we need to respect and cower before? NO. Not anymore. Now, as he lies, dead, he is forced to bow before us, in atonement for his tyranny."

"How poetic," Shizuko said sarcastically.

"He sounds like a smart and prestigious person," said Ryuu.

"With an ego to match. He sounds arrogant, like he's implying that HE should be worshipped for his brains and not Shinji's brawn," said Shizuko.

"That's an interesting way to look at it," said Ryuu. "And he sounds a little too confident about his murder."

"Too confident," said Shizuko, frowning. "He's planning another one, guys."

"That, he is," said Ryuu. "But we don't know who could be next…"

Kyu and Meg watched the exchange between the two geniuses. It was like watching a tennis match, looking from one person and then turning to another, back and forth.

"Hey, don't strain your brains, guys," said Kyu cheerfully.

"HEY! What are you kids doing in there?"

A police officer yelled at them. "This is a crime scene! Nobody should be in here!"

"We didn't touch anything, sir," said Kyu.

At that, the officer seemed to soften a bit. But still…

"That's good, but GET OUT OF HERE! Detective Iwashizu won't be too happy about this…"

The four teens looked at each other with raised eyebrows, and quickly exited the room, while the officer continued to banter on about "kids ruining the crime scene" and how "teenagers have no respect for authority".

Musashi, Mei, Sumika, Momoko and Rei were standing outside the room.

_What the heck is Rei doing here?_ Shizuko thought.

Musashi nodded at Ryuu in greeting. "This is weird, huh?"

"Yeah, it is," Ryuu agreed. "Who would actually want to kill him?"

Musashi shook his head amusedly. "Well, do you want them alphabetically or by date of attack?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" asked Kyu, interested.

Mei snorted in disdain. "Shinji bullies just about everyone in this school. Including me, in fact. And…didn't you have a fight with him a couple of days ago, Musashi?"

"It wasn't really a fight; it was more of an argument…"

"_Suuure_, and most arguments nowadays include kicks and punches," said Mei cynically, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

"That was a long time ago!" burst out Musashi.

"Sure it was."  
"Enough, guys," interjected Rei. "The guy is practically dead with his tongue hanging out already; can't you at least _try_ to respect his memory?"

Mei rolled his eyes. "What's there to respect? The only people who'd come to his funeral, _if he even has one_, are his two stupid cronies who don't even know what goes on in the world."

Rei sighed. "Right, we all know that. But even so…"

Mei shook his head. "I'm not going to complain about this, you guys. If you ask me, this is a cause for celebration. Even though I never even had a chance to tell him off."

He walked off down the hallway with his nose in the air.

Sumika shook her head.

Musashi smirked. "Who's willing to bet that he's gonna be next on the kill list?"

That remark somehow touched something in Ryuu's mind. _They really don't care, do they? To them it's nothing, like a standing joke…_

Shaking their heads and snickering, Musashi, Sumika and Momoko went their separate ways.

Rei stayed a little longer, frowning. "Those guys can be so inconsiderate. This is serious. Two people have died and they don't even care."

Shizuko nodded. "I know."  
Rei shook his head. "Anyway, I'll be seeing you. Bye."

He put his hands in his pockets and walked off down the corridor to his own room.

Ryuu raised an eyebrow at the exchange. "He seems genuinely concerned."

"I guess so," said Shizuko.

"OY! All of you!"

The police officer was yelling again. "Detective Iwashizu wants to talk to everyone who was here!"

_What, does he have a built-in loudspeaker in his voice box?_ Shizuko thought irritably as the man's voice rattled her eardrums.

"What happened to the other kids who were here?" asked a middle-aged man in a brownish coat. Apparently, he seemed to be the detective.

"They went somewhere, I think," said Kyu.

The detective sighed heavily. "Gah, the days of easy detective work is now gone. Now even people at the crime scene don't even bother to stay for questioning!"

The man turned to Kyu. "Kid, do me a favor, and try to look for them, would you? But be back, I need your statement too."

"Of course," said Kyu cheerfully. He ran off.

* * *

"Everyone here was confirmed to be at the crime scene, is that correct?" 

Detective Iwashizu looked at each of them in turn, focusing on each of their faces.

Musashi, Rei, Mei, Sumika, and Momoko set themselves far from each other as though they refused to have any kind of association with one another, which was a bit surprising, since they had been quite chummy in the corridor.

Kyu, Ryuu, Meg, and Shizuko were there as well, though looking a lot less nervous.

Detective Iwashizu laid down the facts before them. "Okay, here's the deal. One of your schoolmates was killed, probably around last night. You found him this afternoon, dead. Who was the first to discover him?"

Muasashi and Mei looked at each other. "We did, sir," said Musashi.

"How did you find him? Tell me in your own words."

Mei began his story. "Well, it happened like this. Shinji had bullied me out of my cell phone a few days before. I couldn't take it anymore that he kept using it in front of me in the hallways, showing off. So this afternoon, since he hadn't been to any of his classes all day, I went to his room myself to confront him about it. I knocked on his door over and over, but he wouldn't answer. I went to Musashi here for help."

Musashi continued the story. "Well, I was just sitting in my bedroom doing homework when Mei knocked on my door, asking me to open the door to Shinji's room…"

"Why would you open Shinji's door? You have access?"

"I'm head of the boy's dorms here. I have spare keys."

"Okay. Continue."

"Well, at first I refused, since I really didn't want to bother a guy like him. But Mei insisted, and in the end, I picked up the spare key and went to Shinji's room. When we got the door open, he was there, lying on the floor, dead. Mei yelled in shock, and then Sumika and Momoko came running."

Sumika carried on with the account. "Momoko here is head of the girl's dorms, and she's my friend. We came running to the room when we heard Mei yell, and we saw the body. Momoko ran off to call the police, and I went off to tell Shizuko."

"Why did you tell her about it?"

"Because she was new to the school…I thought that maybe she deserved to know, and I gave her a heads-up."  
Momoko piped up, saying, "I was there for only a short time, I ran off to call the police."

Detective Iwashizu turned to Rei. "And you? How did you end up at the crime scene?"

Rei replied, "I ran into Momoko as she was running back from her call to the police, she told me that someone had been killed again, and I just followed her as she went back. And I saw the rest of them huddled around Shinji's door."  
The detective turned to Kyu, Ryuu, Meg, and Shizuko. "And the four of you?"  
"We heard from Sumika about the killing, and we just came to the room to take a look at it…" said Shizuko.

"One of my officers said that you were in the room. What were you doing in there?"

"We just wanted to see what happened, that's all," said Kyu promptly, although a bit too cheerfully for his own good.

"Oh, so you just thought you could waltz into a crime scene and take a look for yourselves. What do you think you are, forensic experts?"

_Close enough, _thought Meg. _After all, we are undercover from DDS._

Ryuu spoke up. "We just thought that maybe we could find something that could help…"

"And did you?" asked the detective, raising an eyebrow.

"Maybe. But what we know is purely based on theory. A forensic investigation could tell much more, and would even help us in formulating a theory."

"Ooh, someone thinks he's an expert. So what's your theory, then, Mr. I-know-everything?"

Ryuu shook his head. "One of the greatest mistakes that a person makes is formulating a theory before he knows all the facts. Therefore, what I have in mind, I will not disclose until such time that I know all the details."

"And what do your friends here have to say? Do they have their own theories, too?"

Kyu nodded vigorously. "Sure we do."  
The detective chuckled. "Really now, this is definitely one of the most amusing things I've ever seen in all my years of investigating. Four kids coming into a crime scene acting like they know everything there is to know about a murder."

_Well, we ARE from DDS,_ Shizuko thought sarcastically.

"What about _you_, sir?" asked Meg curiously. "Is there anything that has been found out about this killing?"

"Huh? Me, you say?" the detective wanted to laugh, now. "I've never seen kids this interested in a crime before. Well, forensic experts are examining the scene right now, and I'm sure we'll turn up something. And we'll see how it matches up with the theory of yours." He smirked. "We'll see just how well-versed you kids are in this business."

The detective stood up and gestured to Musashi, Sumika, Mei, Momoko, and Rei. "The five of you can leave now. Do your homework or something. Thank you for your statements."

The five people looked at each other, confused, but stood up and left.

Rei gave Shizuko a last glance before closing the door.

* * *

**ra****nts: the next chapter will contain more details of the investigation. **

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	7. Not A Trace

**Since I had nothing to do, I've decided to write again, although this mystery seems to be taking its toll on me. **

**Anyway, here's the next chapter. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q. anyone who thinks otherwise needs to have a brain transplant.

* * *

**

**Chapter 7: Not a Trace**

The detective escorted Kyu, Ryuu, Meg and Shizuko back to the crime scene with a smirk. "Okay, then. Forensic experts have examined the scene, and the body."

They entered the room again. The only thing that was different was the fact that Shinji's corpse had been removed, and a white chalk outline was there to mark the place where he lay.

The detective held up a sheaf of papers. "I'm going to read out to you what the forensic experts found, and you'll tell me what your so-called theories are."

The four teens looked at each other. _Is this guy serious?_ they all thought.

"All right. First of all: the victim's name, Shinji Nogisaka. Estimated time of death: between 1:00 am to 2:00 am this morning according the recorded body temperature post mortem. Found lying on his front, with a cord around his neck and dark red or purple patches on his back…"

"The body was moved," Shizuko said quickly.

"Eh—what?" the detective sputtered, then stopped his report.

"The body was moved after death," Ryuu repeated.

"And tell me why you think that."

Shizuko sighed. "After death, a person's blood sinks to the lowest portion of his body. It seeps out of the blood vessels and into the surrounding tissue, leaving a dark red—or purple—patch on the skin."

"It becomes fixed after a certain amount of time," continued Ryuu. "So if you find a body that lying on its front with purple patches on its back, you can conclude that the body was moved after death."

The detective gave turned up his nose at them. "Lucky guess."

Meg rolled her eyes towards the ceiling.

The detective continued the report in a haughty tone. "Along with the curtain cord around the neck, there were hand-shaped bruises around his throat, followed by an even deeper groove around the neck…"

"I didn't see any bruises on his neck," said Meg. "But there was a groove around his throat, caused by the curtain cord, obviously."

"Maybe the hand-shaped bruises, usually seen at the surface of strangled neck, have faded," said Kyu. "But in that case, they could probably find the bruising under the layers of flesh under the skin."

The detective pursed his lips in annoyance and showed them a photo of a cut-open neck, where, on the layers of flesh inside the skin, was a clear deep-purplish handmark. "Right again."

The detective turned to Meg. "How did you know that the bruises weren't on the surface?"

"I saw the body, and I remember every single detail."

"How?"

"Well, you see, sir, I've been blessed with a photographic memory…"

"A photo—what?"

"A photographic memory means that I can remember everything I see, or hear."

"Interesting."

The detective continued his report. "The cord found around the neck of the victim was a match to the curtain cord found in his room. It was cut off and used as a device to asphyxiate the victim…"

Ryuu's voice interrupted the statement.

"Detective Iwashizu. You will have realized by now that we are going nowhere with this case at the moment. The killer has left nothing to trace him by. All we have just done is explain to you how he died. However, it does nothing to help us discover the identity of the murderer. That has to be your top priority, isn't it?"

The detective sighed. "Kid, I know. You're right. But like you said, there's nothing more I can do here. I've looked at the evidence, and frankly, it's said all that it's needed to say. Unless something else turns up, I'm sorry. I can't do anything more."

Kyu piped up uneasily. "So what was with all this?"  
The detective chuckled in spite of himself. "I wanted to see how you interpreted the situation. After all, you've been here for longer than I have, and your knowledge of the students would have helped in making a break in this case. But I'm afraid I've done all I can…"

* * *

"This isn't good," Kyu said later after their conversation with the detective. "There's no break in the case, and the killer's been as good as he was last time. Not a trace." 

"I know," said Meg. "This can go on for a while, and we all know that we can't afford to let that happen."

They were in Shizuko's room once again, and Shizuko was busy typing out a message to Kazuma. Her fingers flew over the computer's keyboard, writing up a report about the second murder.

"Hmm…Meg, do you mind dictating to me what the detective said earlier in his report?" asked Shizuko, pausing in her typing.

"The victim's name, Shinji Nogisaka. Estimated time of death, between 1:00 am to 2:00 am this morning. Found lying on his front, with a cord around his neck and dark red or purple patches on his back…" Meg began reciting from memory.

"Wait, stop right there," said Kyu.

Shizuko and Meg looked up at him. "What is it, Kyu?" asked Meg.

"Well, why would Shinji's body have been moved? And how? Okay, we know he died on his back, but then why would someone want to turn him over?" said Kyu, musing.  
"Obviously it had to be some time after he had died, which means…"

"Which means that someone else found the body before Mei and Musashi did," finished Ryuu, who had been quiet all this time.

"But who?"

"Is there anything else you remember on Shinji's body?"

"Wait, wait, let me think…" Meg placed her fingers at her temple and closed her eyes, a position which she often assumed when trying to recall something.

Everyone stared at her, waiting for an answer.

Her pink eyes snapped open. "Of course…there was a strand of purple somewhere on his sleeve."

Kyu and Shizuko looked at Ryuu…and their eyes flicked upward to his purplish-blue hair.

Ryuu looked from one to the other. "What? You can't possibly think that I did it."  
Kyu and Shizuko looked back at Meg, who shook her head. "No, it wasn't Ryuu's shade of purple. Darker. And longer."

Kyu, Shizuko, and Ryuu sighed in relief.

"Wait, a minute, Meg, I want you to look at something."

Shizuko typed something on her computer, and all of a sudden, a color palette appeared on the monitor.

"Can you pick out the closest color to the strand?"  
Meg wrinkled her eyebrows, thinking. She pointed to a deep, royal purple shade. "That's pretty close."

"Ah…now that's interesting."  
Everyone else looked at her. "What?"

Shizuko turned to them. "Mitsuru Asho just made her way to the top of my suspect list."

"Why?" asked Kyu.

"When I bumped into her this morning, she had purple streaks in her hair, a lot like this one. But she's also blonde…I don't know why some of her other hairs didn't get on him."

"Well, dyed hair has a tendency to fall out more easily, since the chemicals are absorbed at the roots," said Ryuu.

"Unless…" Shizuko began. "No, it couldn't be."

"Unless what?" asked Meg.

"Maybe Mitsuru and Shinji are together…I'll leave to your imagination how her hairs got there…"

Meg playfully slapped Shizuko on the arm.

"Ow," complained Shizuko. "What was that for?"

"For giving me a very annoying visual."  
Shizuko pouted. "Sorry, all the stuff that Sumika told me about Mitsuru and Makoto must have infected my brain."  
Meg shook her head.

Shizuko sighed.

Kyu and Ryuu looked at each other, uncertain of what to say.

"Well, anyway, now I know why she was so jumpy this morning. I bumped onto her and she went all Godzilla on me."

"But why move the body and not tell anyone about it?"

"Maybe because she was secretly glad about him dying?"

"Or maybe she killed him…?"

"It's definite maybe."

"But a definite maybe can also be a maybe not."  
Ryuu sighed. "We have no proof, save for a couple of hairs, that she killed him. For all we know, that hair could have been on him long before he died."

"True, true. But then we're back where we started…"

Shizuko continued typing again, this time finishing the report and sending it to Kazuma.

* * *

Moments later, Ryuu's cell phone began ringing. They all looked at him with raised eyebrows. Ryuu winced and quickly answered his phone. 

"Hello, Ryuu here."

"Ryuu, it's Kazuma. I just got the report from Shizuko."

Ryuu looked at Shizuko. "That was fast."  
Kyu looked at him. "Is it Kazuma?"

Ryuu nodded. "Listen, Kazuma, I'll just put you on the speaker so they'll hear you as well."  
Ryuu's phone rested on the bed, Kazuma's voice emanating from it.

"Well, Principal Dan's heard the news, you guys. He isn't too happy that the killer struck."

"Neither are we," said Shizuko.

"Well, what makes things even worse is the fact that there wasn't a trace left of the killer, save for the message on the screen. And it was well-written, too, like the guy was intelligent," continued Kazuma. They could hear his fingers clattering away at a keyboard in the background.

"That's what we're all thinking, since the killer's clever enough not to leave a trace leading to his identity," Kyu said.

"But you say the body was moved?" asked Kazuma.

"Yeah, based on the forensic report, he was," Meg replied.

"And there's no clue to the identity of the person who moved him? For all we know he could have killed him…" Kazuma mused.

"We do, Meg remembered seeing a strand of purple hair at his sleeve," said Kyu.

"Ryuu, you didn't have anything to do with this, did you?" asked Kazuma with a mock accusing tone in his voice.

"Of course not," said Ryuu defensively.

"Meg said that the shade of purple was darker. And I know someone who could match it," said Shizuko.

"So what's the problem?"

"We can't prove that she actually moved him, much less killed him. For all we know, the hair could have been left on him for a while," said Shizuko.

"Nothing else aside from that? Any fingerprints? Foot prints? Epithelial traces?"

"Epithelial traces?" asked Kyu.

"Those are traces of skin cells. Humans shed skin all the time, and leave it on most surfaces. Since they contain DNA, they could be traced to an individual," explained Ryuu.

"Yeah," said Kazuma.

"This isn't good," said Shizuko. "We're at a loss again…Why can't we even collar this guy?"

"Well, one thing's for sure. I'm not giving up on this case," said Kyu. "What about you guys?"

"Of course we're not giving up, whoever said we are?" sad Meg.

"I'm staying on it," said Shizuko.

"I'm not backing out," said Ryuu.

"And I'll be here to help you guys," said Kazuma.

Kyu grinned. "That's good, after all…"

"If a detective gives up, the case will remain unsolved!"

* * *

**rants: still writing this story out. The next chapter will come, don't worry. **

**PLEASE REVIEW!  
and if you can, please tell me who you suspect is the murderer. From all the reviews I received so far, Rei has been on people's minds as the killer. Although I'm not saying who it is, right now. You will all know anyway.**

**By the way, I'd like to point out that all the information in this chapter about evidence in the crime scene is all true. Blood does sink to the lowest point of the body after death, and there are some signs of violence that can't be seen at the surface of skin. If that's the case, then they are usually found within the layers under the skin. The stuff about epithelial traces is also true. And as you all know, after death, a corpse's body temperature lowers. Forensic experts take its temperature, and the general temperature of the environment it was in. The regular body temperature of a living person is 37 degrees Celsius, and at a place where it is neither very hot nor very cold, a person's body temperature after death lowers at an average rate of 1 degree Celsius per hour. Then depending on the size and body mass of the person (a fat person cools more slowly than a thin one), forensic experts can calculate the time the person died. **

**Eh, enough lecturing from Professor Riyoko and PLEASE REVIEW!**


	8. A Third Murder

**Another chapter. The plot thickens!**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q. I wouldn't be making fanfictions if I did. And if I did own it, then Kyu and Meg would have hooked up by now.

* * *

**

**Chapter 8: A Third Murder**

Shizuko walked into the girl's bathroom during one of her Science class. Somehow she had gotten her hands dirty with who-knows-what, although the teacher assured her that it was probably harmless, she was going to wash it off anyway.

As she turned one of the taps in the sink, she heard someone sniffling in one of the stalls.

_That_ caught her attention.

She walked over to the farthest stall, which was open.

Mitsuru Asho was there, sitting on the toilet (which was covered, of course) and crying her eyes out.

"Mitsuru?"

The girl looked up. Wiping her eyes on her sleeve, she choked out, "What do you want?" trying to sound tough, but her tears overpowered her.

"Nothing…I just wanted to know, what's wrong?"

"None of your business."

"Fine, so it's none of my business." Shizuko turned away to wash her hands at the sink. Then an idea came to her.

"I just find it weird that the day after they find someone dead, only one person's crying," she said offhandedly.

"Shut up," answered Mitsuru. But more tears fell from her eyes as she said it.

"This is about him, isn't it?"

"So what if it is?"

"Did you like Shinji?"

"Like him?" Mitsuru laughed bitterly. "I loved him."

"So you were together? A bully like him?"

"He wasn't a bully! To me, anyway."

"So why don't you come clean and tell me about it. Then I'll shut up, if that's really what you want."

"Fine, if you must know. Shinji and I just started going out. Just a few days ago. It was fun. He's really great. He even told me he wasn't like any other girl he'd ever met."

Shizuko wasn't really interested in this kind of information, but she listened anyway.

"Anyway, he told me the other day he had something planned for us the next day. But I never saw him all day yesterday, and I only found out today that he was killed. So…he's gone. The only other guy who's ever really liked me and he dies. I must be really unlucky in love…first Makoto takes my other boyfriend, and this killer guy takes my second."

The blonde girl looked up at her. "I must look really pathetic, right now. But what's wrong with me?"  
Shizuko suddenly felt sorry for the girl. "Look, nothing's wrong with you. And I'm sure that it's not bad luck…maybe they've only gone because there's something, or someone out there who's way better, who'll never leave you."

Mitsuru sniffled, and Shizuko could see that she was close to smiling.

"Look, I appreciate how you tried to be nice to me and all, but anyway. You didn't come here to ask me about my love life, did you?"  
Shizuko winced inwardly. _This girl can be sharp._

"It's about Shinji," she said uneasily.

"Okaaaay, what about him?" Mitsuru said, tugging at one of her purple streaks.

"I saw his dead body, and I thought…well, I thought I saw a strand of purple hair…like yours," she said, pointing at the lock of hair Mitsuru was tugging on.

"You didn't imagine it, sweetie, it was probably my hair you saw on him," Mitsuru quipped. "We were snogging the day before he died."

Shizuko cringed again. "Right."

"Anyway, I'm glad to have done it….at least before he died I got a taste of him."

"Uh-huh. Anyway, I have to go, I still have to get to my science class."

* * *

"I still can't believe I got dragged into that kind of conversation," Shizuko said that afternoon. Classes had just ended, and the four of them had met again in her room. Shizuko had just told them about the talk she had had with Mitsuru in the girl's bathroom. 

"Well, she confessed to having been with him the day before he died, and we know why her hair is on him, but that could mean that someone else moved the body," said Ryuu.

"Maybe one of the guys who first found the body moved him, and Sumika didn't know. She said that they were too afraid to move him, remember?" said Shizuko.

"Yeah," agreed Meg. "I heard her say so."

"But its weird why they would move him…He died on his back, so…" Kyu trailed off.

"Wait, let's take into perspective how he died…let's try a little reenactment. Kyu, you be Shinji, and Ryuu, you play the part of the killer," said Shizuko.

"Okay, let's say Shinji was in the room, and the killer was outside. How'd the killer get in, first?"

"He could've knocked, and Shinji went to answer it," said Ryuu.

"Okay, so he answers the door, and the killer grabs him by the throat and forces himself in," said Shizuko, while Ryuu put his hand at Kyu's throat to comply with the role-play.

"Kyu, step backward a bit…and then, collapse," said Shizuko.

Kyu "fell" to the floor, on his back.

"Okay. He's on his back, the way Shinji died…but then, there's still the cord around his neck. How did the killer manage that? We know that Shinji had passed out…"

Ryuu stepped forward, with a towel rolled up, then proceeded to pretend to "strangle" Kyu with it.

"Okay, so he had to get Shinji to a standing position, then strangled him with the cord. Enough, Ryuu, let Kyu go."

Ryuu let Kyu drop—gently, of course.

Kyu landed with a soft _thump_ on the worn carpeted floor. He still landed on his back.

"Well, that's it. Shinji dies on his back. The killer leaves him, and then returns, for some odd reason, just to move the body…but why?"

"Maybe to remove some kind of evidence," mused Ryuu, helping Kyu up again.

"Maybe…but…oh, I don't know," Shizuko muttered, pounding one of her pillows in frustration.  
Suddenly her cell phone rang, beeping and whistling merrily. Shizuko mumbled something incoherently, then picked it up and answered it.

"Hello?"

"Shizuko? It's Sumika. Listen, I think I know just who might be behind all this."

"Behind all what?" asked Shizuko, hoping against hope that she wasn't talking about the case.

"The killings, of course," came Sumika's cheerful voice, making Shizuko's heart sink.

Kyu, Ryuu, and Meg all looked at her in confusion.

Kyu's face was asking, "Who's on the phone?"  
Meg's expression read, "Is it about the case?"

Ryuu's look was saying, "Tell whoever it is to call you back."  
Shizuko answered them all with a look that said, "WAIT!"

Meanwhile, listening to Sumika's excited voice was quickly giving her a bit of a headache, since the girl was off rambling.

"Wait, what exactly are you trying to say?" asked Shizuko when she could finally get a word in.

"I'm saying that I think I know who's been killing everyone, but it's just a hunch. I'm not totally sure yet."

"Really? But how did you think it in the first place?"

"Can't explain. It sort of came to me. But I'll tell you tomorrow, when I've got everything. I've got a ton of homework tonight, and I won't be available till later this evening…"

"Uuh, okay?" said Shizuko, unsure.

"Bye!"

"Bye…"

Ryuu raised an eyebrow as Shizuko disconnected the call. "What was that about?"

"It was Sumika. She thinks she knows who the killer is, but she didn't say who it was, and she said herself that she wasn't sure…"

"What could have made her think that?"

"I don't know, she said that it sort of just came to her."

* * *

On the other side of the school grounds, Sumika had just ended the call on her mobile phone.  
She didn't notice, but a shadowy figure was lurking behind her. 

_So she thinks she knows, huh? Well, she better think again._

The dark form followed Sumika all the way to her bedroom.

Sumika, unsuspecting, unlocked her bedroom door and went inside, never seeing the figure come in after her.

Seconds later, she was struggling for dear life against a pair of strong arms, as they encircled her and thrust a handkerchief, soaked in a sweet-smelling liquid, over her nose and mouth.

Chloroform! He was trying to knock her out.

She couldn't scream or call for help, and a few moments later, her vision was fading, and she slumped to the floor.

The sinister figure, pleased with his success so far, brought out a knife. Its five-inch long blade gleamed threateningly in the light of the incandescent above him.

In one fluid motion, he plunged the knife straight into the bottom of her rib cage.

Then as though realizing what he had just done, the killer turned and fled from the room.

* * *

Sumika lay on the floor, her vision becoming poorer and poorer as images began swimming before her eyes. 

It didn't matter, no matter how much the knife hurt. She had seen her killer's face!

_I'm still alive, for now, but I won't be, soon…_

She fought to keep her brain awake. The pain of the wound, and the blood she was losing, made it positive that she would pass out, and die, within moments.

Reaching up to her desk, she groped the tabletop. Her plastic pencil mug clattered to the floor, scattering pens everywhere. Her memo pad had fallen as well.

Wincing with the pain now spreading all over her insides, she wrote something on the top sheet using a felt-tip marker.

Satisfied, she crumpled the piece of paper in her fist.

The pen rolled out of her hand as her last breath escaped her lips.

* * *

Musashi was running down the hallway, looking panicked. 

He crashed right into Meg and Shizuko, who had just come out of one of the rooms in the dorms.

"Ah, sorry!" he said, panting.

"What's the matter with you?" asked Shizuko.

"Nothing, it's just…" he was breathing heavily. "Shinji's old cronies are after me, that's all…"

"Oh," said Meg.

"Uh, yeah. Good luck with that," said Shizuko.

"Thanks, but, uh, I gotta go now, see ya," he said, running off again.

"He must have been in some argument," Shizuko muttered as Musashi sped off. "One of his little gold cufflinks was missing."

"Yeah, I saw," said Meg.

"What did you see?" asked Kyu, having arrived just as Meg was saying her last statement.

"Oh, nothing, Musashi was just on the run, that's all," said Meg, a little surprised at Kyu's sudden appearance.

"Oh," said Kyu, looking a little disappointed.

Ryuu came up to them, bringing about sighs from girls in the hallway. Apparently not noticing, he spoke to Shizuko in a bit of an undertone.

"Shizuko, don't you think that you should be talking to Sumika about who she thinks the killer is?"

"I don't know…I never even knew she was interested in the case. I don't even know what kind of connection she's made…"

"If she knows who the killer is, or if she's expressed that she thinks she does, she could be the next target," said Ryuu.

"I know, I know. But still, I have doubts that she actually knows, or if she's actually discovered something that could lead us…"

"Any lead is better than no lead. When is the best time you can see her?"

"She said she had a lot of homework to do this afternoon, so maybe I'll see her later tonight."

"Right. We'll come with you. Kyu, Meg, do you think you can make it?"

"I don't have much planned," said Meg.

"Yeah, and I can get some homework done, too," said Kyu.

"All right. We'll meet at around eight, then…" said Ryuu.

They all nodded.

* * *

**Rants: what will they do when they discover that the only person who _possibly_ has a lead on the case has been murdered as well? Go to the next chapter!**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	9. A Dying Message?

**A murder has occurred at Kokuryo High. 3 of Class Q's members go to investigate, along with their new member. Another murder happens while they are there. Just when they are beginning to understand their case, a third murder happens, waiting to be discovered…**

**Will this trail of blood continue? Or will Class Q crack this case and foil the presumptuous murderer, who believes he is untraceable?**

**There's only ONE ANSWER!**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 9: A Dying Message?**

"Sumika?"  
Shizuko knocked on Sumika's bedroom door. "Sumika."  
No reply came.

Shizuko looked at her DDS classmates, who were standing expectantly behind her. "She's not answering."

Ryuu raised an eyebrow. "I thought she was supposed to be finished with her work by tonight."

"Yeah, I thought so too," Shizuko replied, leaning on the doorknob carelessly.

The knob turned, causing Shizuko to slip a little.

"What the—?" She was surprised. "It's open?"  
She pushed the door open all the way.

Nothing could have prepared her for the shock she received next.

Sumika was lying on the floor, a knife sticking out of her ribcage. Thick, dark liquid dripped down the knife's handle, leaving a small pool of blackened blood on the carpeted floor.

Shizuko's jaw dropped open in astonishment. "Oh no…"  
She felt her knees weaken, and fought to keep her balance.

"What's wro—Wha—" Kyu trailed off as he saw Sumika's dead body on the floor.

Ryuu came in with a questioning look on his face, but it was replaced by a look of pure amazement moments later as he saw the situation. "Oh, no...Meg, call the police," he said, trying to keep his cool.

"What's happened?" asked Meg.

"Another murder," said Shizuko. Her legs gave way completely, and she fell to the floor, almost fainting. This was too much of a shock.

Ryuu tried to bring her out of it. "Come on, snap out of it," he told her. "This is just another crime scene, think straight."

Shizuko shook her head a little, trying to clear her head. "All right."  
Meg came in to take a look at the room. Seeing Sumika's body, she gasped.

Kyu nodded to her, saying, "Go, Meg, call the police."

Meg nodded quickly and bolted.

The three teens left behind in the room looked at each other.

Shizuko was still in a bit of a shock, but nodded at them. "Is there anything on the computer? A message?"  
Kyu looked at the open computer. His answer was a bit of a surprise. "No, there isn't."

"That's odd. The killer always leaves a message. He's just broken his own pattern," said Ryuu.

"This kill was a bit rushed," said Shizuko.

She took a long, sad look at Sumika's position. Then suddenly, she noticed something. The lifeless girl had something crushed in her fist.

Looking at the body again, she noticed that one of the arms seemed to be reaching for something. Following the general direction, she saw a felt-tip pen that appeared to have rolled away from the hand. Even though pens were scattered everywhere, judging by the pencil mug that was on the floor, this one was isolated, far from the others.

"You guys, take a look at this," she said.

The two boys came up to her. "What is it?" asked Kyu.

She pointed at the pen. "What does that say to you?"  
Ryuu thought for a second. "She was still alive. She used the pen to write something…"

"A dying message!" exclaimed Kyu. "She could have written the name of the killer!"

"Right…but we can't touch the crime scene, unfortunately. There's something in her fist, but if we try to get it out now, we might be charged with tampering with crime scene evidence…"

"So we have to wait until the detective gets here," said Kyu, disappointed.

"Darn," muttered Ryuu.

"We'd have a lot more freedom on the investigation if they knew we were DDS students," Shizuko muttered.

"But we'd have to work from the police's point of view, we wouldn't be able to find out much about the victim and people involved," said Ryuu reasonably.

"Yeah, that's true. I'm glad that we're undercover anyway."

* * *

"I can't believe this," Detective Iwashizu said exasperatedly. "You guys again?" 

"Well, we _did_ find her first," said Kyu in an embarrassed tone.

"I can see that," said the detective sourly.

Shizuko rested her chin in her palm and rolled her eyes.

"So what's your theory about this one?" asked the detective.

"She told me earlier this after noon that she had a hunch about who the killer was. She wasn't sure, though, and said she'd tell me when she was sure of everything. When we came to see her tonight, she was dead already…" said Shizuko.

"We have a feeling that the killer found out about her idea and feared that he would be discovered, so he killed her," said Ryuu.

"But there was no message on the computer, this time," said Kyu. "That was the only weird thing about the whole thing."

"But we noticed something, sir," said Shizuko uneasily. "We think she tried to leave a dying message, while she was still alive."

"How do you know she could have lived after she was stabbed?"

"Well, from what I know, when someone is stabbed, it takes about ten to fifteen minutes for the person to die while stomach acids seep into the chest cavity, poisoning him or her from within," she said quietly.

"She had a chance to do something, but was either too weak to call for help, or she could have been drugged beforehand. Maybe she only stayed conscious for a few moments," said Ryuu.

"I saw something in her hand earlier, Detective," said Shizuko. "We think that it whatever was in her hand might lead to the killer."

"Well, you might have something there," said the detective thoughtfully. He had just accepted a file folder from one of his officers and was flipping through it as he spoke. "It turns out that there were traces of chloroform in her system. She could have been subdued that way and then killed."

Detective Iwashizu raised an eyebrow at something in the data. "That's odd."

"What is?" asked Meg curiously.

"There _was _something in her hand when she died. But I don't know what it could possibly mean!"

"What _was_ in her hand?" asked Kyu, leaning forward excitedly.

Detective Iwashizu drew out a photo and placed it on the table.

Kyu, Ryuu, Meg and Shizuko all looked at each other, then stared at the photo.

Seeing the item photographed, they didn't know whether to be excited, disappointed, or confused.

The photo showed a piece of paper, all right. But far from showing a dying message, it all seemed like a joke.

There was nothing on the paper but a series of senseless pen strokes.

* * *

**Rants: is the piece of paper a clue, somehow? What about the senseless pen strokes? What could it all mean?  
****Fi****nd out in the next chapter. **

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	10. The Final Clue

**It's about time I updated. I need to finish these stories before school starts, then after that, I won't be writing for a long while, I'm sorry. **

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 10: The Final Clue**

"What could it mean?"  
Shizuko was holding a copy of the crime scene photograph in her hands, turning it over and over.

It was noon, and the four of them had sat at the same table during their lunch hour. Since the cafeteria was hopelessly noisy, they didn't bother to keep their voices down too much; however, they took care not to let anyone know what they were talking about.

"It just doesn't make sense. Why would she go through the trouble of ripping off something from her memo pad to write something that no one can understand?"

"Maybe that was the point," said Ryuu. "Maybe she thought the killer could come back and take whatever evidence he accidentally left behind."

"That's a possibility," said Kyu.

"According to the detective, there wasn't any clue to the killer, again. The knife didn't even have any fingerprints on it. And no trace of DNA was left from the killer, either," said Meg.

Shizuko sighed and turned the photograph over again, twisting it upside down, then right side up…whichever side it was supposed to be facing.

"I can't even tell it if it's right side up," muttered Shizuko.

Her homework, which was spread out on one side of the table, was left ignored for a while as she wrinkled her eyebrows, trying to make sense of the piece of paper Sumika had left behind.

The note itself was composed of three lines, each with a set of different series of pen strokes.

"There are three lines in whatever she was trying to say. It's too organized to be that senseless," Shizuko muttered.

"She wrote those lines with a purpose," said Kyu.

"But what?" asked Meg.

Shizuko began doodling on a piece of paper, using her pen to stab the document in places. Ink splattered the paper in several places, and even blotted her fingertips, but she didn't seem to care, she just kept scribbling roughly on the paper.

"Don't take your anger out on your homework, Shizu," said Kyu.

She sighed heavily. "I just wish I could figure out what this _means_!"

"We don't have any clues, no leads, and now this note, which doesn't make much sense, is left behind by our victim. And we can't even decipher it!"

"I sent a copy of the note to Kazuma last night, anyway. Maybe he can figure it out," said Ryuu.

"Have you heard from him since?" asked Kyu.

"No," said Ryuu.

Shizuko sighed. "Maybe he's busy trying to run it through his software. Let's hope he's got something on the note soon."

* * *

That evening, the foursome had met in Meg's room, since Meg had offered to meet there instead. 

As soon as they had gathered, Ryuu's cell phone rang.

They all looked at him expectantly as he answered it.

"Hello?"

"Ryuu, it's Kazuma—"

"Don't forget me, computer boy!" yelled a voice in the background.

"Kinta, is that you?" Ryuu asked.

"Of course, who else could it be?" The older boy's voice replied in his ear.

"I have you guys on speaker, Ryuu, so this big dope can hear you," explained Kazuma.

"Wait, Kazuma, I'll put you on speaker as well," said Ryuu.

Ryuu's cell phone rested on the bed again as Kinta and Kazuma's voices resonated through the room, clear but with a metallic echo, a hint of static, behind it.

"I'm sorry, Ryuu, I was up all night trying to figure out that 'dying message' that I received from you last night, but I got nothing. It doesn't seem to be anything I've ever encountered," said Kazuma.

"I told the computer boy to lay off the software, but no, he ran it through anyway. I told him it wouldn't work," said Kinta.

"Do you have any idea what it says, Kinta?" asked Kyu.

"Uh…."

"That means 'no'," Kazuma replied.

They suddenly heard some kind of impact behind the metallic echo. It seemed that Kinta had whacked Kazuma.

Shizuko raised an eyebrow.

"Anyway, you guys are sure that you can't figure out who did this last murder?" asked Kazuma, who seemed to have recovered from Kinta's mild blow.

Ryuu sighed. "Not yet. I guess everything depends on this note."

"You guys can figure it out, I'm sure!" said Kinta's optimistic voice.

"Thanks for the support, anyway," said Meg.

"No problem," said Kazuma.

"Bye," said Kinta.

"Bye," said Ryuu.

* * *

Shizuko slumped in Meg's computer chair as Ryuu disconnected the call. 

"I can't believe this," Shizuko muttered. Something rustled as she slid in her seat.

"What's this?" she muttered, reaching into her pocket.

She pulled out the piece of paper that she had been scribbling on earlier during lunchtime. She looked at it with a bored, uninterested expression on her face.

"Was that the paper you were scribbling on at lunchtime?" asked Meg. "All the same blots are there."

"Yeah, it is," Shizuko replied. "It's just a bunch of useless scribbles."

"Hmm, you know what, some of the scribbles look kind of like unfinished Japanese characters," said Kyu.

"Hm?" Shizuko looked at it again. "Yeah, I guess you're right…"

_Wait a minute._

She looked at the paper again. "Could it really be that simple?"

"What?" asked Meg.

Shizuko's eyes widened. "Oh my gosh. Oh. My. Gosh," she said shakily.

"What?" Kyu and Ryuu said at the same time.

Shizuko covered her mouth, her eyes shifting from one side to the other, as though thinking about something, really hard.

"I'll be back," Shizuko said, leaping up from her seat and running from the room.

Kyu, Ryuu, and Meg looked at each other in confusion.

"I hate it when she does that," Ryuu muttered to himself.

* * *

Shizuko was in her room, fishing around in her things for the crime scene photograph. 

"Yes! Here it is!" she said.

She sat down at her table and began doing writing something on a piece of paper.

"Right…yeah, that looks right…" she muttered to herself.

Kyu pushed open her door. "Shizuko? You okay?"

Ryuu came in, followed by Meg. "What was that about?"

Shizuko waved the paper in their faces. "I've got it!"

"I know who killed Sumika!" she cried out.

The three teens looked at her in confusion.

"And I know how to prove it," she said, rubbing her hands together. "We need to get back to the crime scene," she continued.

"Wait, wait, let me see that," said Kyu, trying to reach for the piece of paper that Shizuko was brandishing at them.

The moment he looked at it, he understood. "Of course! How could we not have seen it?"  
Ryuu took it from Kyu and his eyes widened. "So now we've got the killer."

"We need to get to the crime scene," said Kyu, running ahead of them.

"Wait! Kyu, wait!" said Shizuko, who sped after him, right on his heels.

Ryuu and Meg looked at each other, and then ran after the two of them.

Shizuko, Ryuu, and Meg reached Kyu just as he was being turned down by the police officer guarding Sumika's room.

"Sorry, kid, this is a crime scene, you can't come in here," said the guard.

"Sir, I need to get in there," said Shizuko, stepping forward.

"Didn't you hear what I just said? No one's allowed in here."

Shizuko looked at Ryuu and asked, "Do you think I should—?"

Ryuu nodded. "Go ahead."  
Shizuko drew out her DDS notebook somewhere under her school uniform's blouse.

"DDS. Let us in."

The guard looked suspicious for a moment, peering at the DDS logo. Then, the expression on his face changed, looking flabbergasted. He let them enter the room.

As soon as they entered the room, Shizuko immediately began looking around, muttering to herself.

"It has to be somewhere around here, maybe forensics missed it…" she said.

Kyu was looking around the back of the computer desk.

Ryuu checked under the bed. "Look at this," he said.

Meg, Kyu and Shizuko came up to him. "What is it?"

"I think we've just found our evidence."

Shizuko looked under the bed, not caring right now what the state of her short skirt was.

"That's it!" cried Shizuko, her voice a bit muffled. She reached for it with a gloved hand, and then showed it to Meg.

"This is it, isn't it, Meg?" Shizuko said, holding up their last piece of evidence.

Meg studied it carefully. "Yes. That's it."

The foursome grinned at each other.

"Now we have the proof," said Ryuu.

"And we can finally close this case!" cried Kyu. "There's only ONE ANSWER!"

* * *

**Rants: curious to find out what the "evidence" is? It'll be in the next chapter, people. **

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


	11. A Killer is Caught

**At last, they have the final clue. But will it be enough to make the killer confess to his deed? **

**There's only ONE ANSWER!**

**Disclaimer: I DO NOT OWN DETECTIVE SCHOOL Q.

* * *

**

**Chapter 11: A Killer is Caught**

Kyu stood in front of them all, a strangely grim expression on his face.

"So we're all here."

Five sets of eyes looked at each other with suspicion and distrust.

Mei. Momoko. Musashi. Rei. And Mitsuru.

The four Class Q students were opposite them, and they were dead serious.

"What's this about?" asked Mei.

"Why did you call all of us here?" asked Momoko.

"We've called you all here to bring you some very important news," Ryuu began.

"As you all would know, three people have been murdered in the past few days. The first was Makoto. Shinji's death followed soon after. And then, Sumika was killed," said Meg.

"We all know that, some crazed wacko did all this, right?" said Mei carelessly.

"Wrong," said Kyu.

"It's the complete opposite. The murderer is, in fact, a very organized and through person," said Ryuu.

"The killer went through great lengths to cover his tracks," said Shizuko.

"He leaves messages on computers, taunting investigators, boasting of his intelligence," continued Meg.

"So, as you can understand, this isn't some insane piece of work. It's a labor of passion. Someone who holds something against the three victims," said Kyu.

"Right," said Ryuu. "The killer, whose traits we've just elaborated to you…is someone in this room."  
The five students sitting opposite them suddenly reacted.

"How dare you say something like that!" said Mei.

"This is ridiculous," said Mitsuru.

"You've got to be joking," said Musashi.

"What's your proof?" said Rei.

"No way," said Momoko.

"Calm down," said Kyu.

"How can you expect us to calm down when you just accused all of us of having to do with these outrageous killings?" retorted Mei.

"And what do you have that proves that one of us is the murderer?" said Musashi.

"There are three clues!" said Kyu.

"The first clue was the state that we found Sumika's body in. The second was the note that she had clasped in her hand when she died. And the third clue was a piece of evidence that we found in Sumika's bedroom."

"Three clues. And there can only be ONE ANSWER!"

"Spare us the drama," said Mei in an annoyed tone, "and give us _details_."

"You want details?" Shizuko challenged. "Why don't you ask the killer yourself?"

"I would, sure, except for one thing. _You haven't told us who it is,_" said Musashi, who had gone purple with impatience.

The four undercover detectives looked at each other knowingly.

Shizuko made a noise that sounded very much like "Tch."

"We know we're right," said Kyu, raising a finger to point.

"Isn't that right, **_MUSASHI_**?"

If it was even possible, Musashi's face went an even deeper shade of purple.

"How can you accuse me of this? What's your proof? I thought that the killer never left a trace when he killed!" Musashi protested, clenching his fists.

The rest of the Kokuryo High students backed away from him in disbelief.

"That's right," said Ryuu in his usual calm voice. "The killer never left a trace when it came to his _planned_ killings. Like we said earlier, he was organized."

"But he made a very big mistake when he killed Sumika," said Shizuko. "His kill was too rushed. He had no time to plan, much less leave a message on her computer, like he always did at other murders."

"That mistake was our first clue," said Kyu. "In his haste to get away from his stabbing, he never bothered to check if his victim was alive."

"Which brings us to hint two: the note we found in Sumika's hand," said Meg.

Meg brought out the crime scene photograph which showed Sumika's "dying message".

"This is the note we found in her hand," said Meg.

Musashi smirked. "What's the big deal? Sumika screwed up, all she did was scribble some lines. What's the proof in that?"

"That's where you're wrong," said Shizuko, staring him down. "This is the first thing that incriminates you, Musashi."

"Oh yeah? Well, tell us then, how does this mark me as the killer?"

"That's what I'm doing," said Shizuko. "Observe."  
She brought out a piece of paper. "There are three sets of these so-called meaningless scribbles. At first glance they all don't make sense. Take each line into consideration. If you put the first set of scribbles in this way…."

She held up the paper. "Does it make sense now?"  
The students were stricken. "It's a Japanese character," said Rei with interest.

"Yes," said Shizuko. "And in the same way, when we do the same thing to the other lines…"

She wrote something else on the paper and held it up. "See? And you can probably guess what this spells."

Mei, Momoko, Mitsuru, and Rei looked at the paper, then stared at Musashi, whose face had been drained of the purple and now just looked pale.

"It says 'musashi'," said Momoko.

Shizuko nodded. "Basically what Sumika did is separate the brush strokes from one another, to confuse the killer if he ever came back to the scene to clean up his 'mess'."

"And if that isn't enough proof," said Ryuu, "There's our third clue."

"Right," said Kyu.

Meg took over this one. "On the day that Sumika was murdered, she called Shizuko on her cell phone, saying that she had a lead on the killer. Although we didn't know for sure who exactly she suspected, she was still killed that same day, possibly soon after she had told us about her idea."

"On that very afternoon, you, Musashi, ran right into Shizuko and me in the corridor, didn't you?"

"So what if I did?"

"You told us that you'd been running from Shinji's buddies. You told us that they'd been bullying you. In truth, you were running from the scene of the crime that you had just committed!"

"That's not true!" Musashi yelled.

"It is," said Shizuko.

"When you ran past us, I distinctly remember that you had one of your cufflinks missing. Shizuko noticed it as well," said Meg.

"And that was our third clue," said Kyu. "We returned to the crime scene when we realized what you had done. We looked for something, even the smallest shred of evidence."

"And we did find it," said Ryuu, holding up a plastic bag labeled "evidence".

"I believe this belongs to you," he said, dropping it on the table.

Inside the little bag was a small gold cufflink.

Musashi's eyes widened at the trinket. He swayed a little from his position, and then, fell to his knees in a sign of defeat.

"Fine...It's true. I killed them."  
Musashi stared at his hands, which were shaking. "I killed them all…"

"Why, then, Musashi?" asked Kyu. "Why'd you do it?"  
Musashi got a hold on the table, and then told his story.

"Makoto and I…we were going out."

"What!" cried Momoko. "But…that means…"

"Yes, it's true; I was the guy that no one knew about. No one knew that we were dating, all that everyone in this school knew was that Makoto had found some cool guy, maybe even one of the older college boys. No one ever even gave a thought that she could fall for an average guy like me."

"But then, something changed. Our dates became less frequent, she became colder towards me, and finally, things just…stopped. She never mentioned anything about breaking up yet, so I had no idea what was going on…I found out, too late, that she had another guy."  
Mitsuru spoke up. "You mean…"

"Yeah, Mitsuru. I caught them before you did."  
Mitsuru came up to him and slapped him, right on the cheek. "You idiot! Why didn't you tell me right away?"  
Musashi didn't seem to care about the red slap mark on his face, but continued his story. "I was too shocked. And angry. I thought, how could she do this when she nas me? I loved her, wasn't that enough? Did she have to go off with some guy who thinks he's all that for dating more than half the girls' population in the school?"

"I didn't think anymore. I wanted revenge. I hated them all, all of them who think that they're better than everyone else just because they're popular, just because loads of people admire them…I wanted to show that even someone they never even noticed, someone they never even knew, could have power. Power that was stronger than all of them put together…I could take their lives!"

"Well, you've taken your last life, Musashi," said Ryuu coldly.

"Yeah, so you caught me. Whatever. I've done all I wanted anyway."

"Oh, sure, Musashi. You did what you wanted. It's great, really, you killing off the popular people in this school," said Shizuko sarcastically. "But here's something you don't know about them, the same way they don't know about you. They're just ordinary people, Musashi. Ordinary people, like you, who are forced to be in the spotlight for the sake of being known. You don't know just how much they suffer just to be in that spotlight. Their lives are open books. There's nothing that they can keep to themselves anymore. They don't have a private life, like you "unknown" people do. Don't you even think that even those popular people have faults, have weaknesses? Don't you think that even they think that your ordinary lives are something that they really want?"

Musashi looked up at her, shaking. "I…I never thought of it that way…"

Moments later, Detective Iwashizu and his officers took Musashi away. Musashi hung his head in shame and regret as the police car drove him away.

Shizuko watched them go, a strange expression on her face.

Rei came up behind her. "That was a nice speech back there."

Shizuko shook her head. "It was nothing. He had to know the real consequence of what he did."

"I think he learned more than that," said Rei. "By the way, I had to ask, why'd you call me in there with the rest of them?"

"Eh, I have a confession to make," said Shizuko with a sigh. "You were on my suspect list from the day I first met you."

"Why is that?" the blond boy asked, amused.

"I don't know. I thought you were suspicious."  
Rei laughed. "I get that all the time."  
Shizuko gave him a small smile. "Well, anyway…"

"Shizuko," a voice called.

She turned around. "Ryuu."  
He came up to her. "Detective Iwashizu wants us to explain how we got involved in this case."

"Oh."

Rei raised an eyebrow in interest. "How _did_ you guys get into this school just when the murders began?"  
Shizuko looked at Ryuu for a second, and then grinned. "Well, you see…"

She and Ryuu brought out their DDS notebooks. "We're from DDS."  
Rei choked. "What? DDS? The detective school run by Morihiko Dan?"

"Yeah," said Ryuu.

"No wonder you guys got this case so fast," said Rei in admiration.

* * *

The foursome returned to DDS later that day in high spirits. 

"WE DID IT!" cried Kyu, dancing around. "All right!"  
Meg was laughing at Kyu's antics. "We did a pretty great job, didn't we?"

"Yeah," said Shizuko, grinning.

Ryuu was wearing one of his rare smiles. "This was a pretty interesting case."

"I can't wait to get another one!" said Kyu, skipping along the hallway of the old school building.

As they opejned the door, Mr. Hongou was there to, er, greet them in his usual manner. "You're late. Sit down, all of you."  
The four of them looked at each other and winced. "I hope we _do _get a case soon, at least we can get away from Mr. Hongou's torture, I mean, lessons," said Kyu.

Ryuu, Meg and Shizuko laughed, only to be quieted by Mr. Hongou's punch against the blackboard.

They all paid rapt attention to his lecture on trailing people…

However, Kyu seemed a bit less interested than usual, gazing out inot the sun that was shining outside their window.

_I wonder if I'll ever become a real detective,_ he mused.

The sun danced merrily outside, shining its rays through the glass pane.

He looked at his classmates: Meg, with her amazing memory; Ryuu, who was one of the greatest in deductive reasoning; Kazuma, with his computer; and Kinta, their very own martial arts expert. And then, of course, there was their new member, Shizuko. Who knew what else she could do for them?

_I'll never give up, though,_ he decided.

_If a detective gives up, the case will remain unsolved!_

**-:owari:-

* * *

****rants: FINALLY it's finished! Did you all like it? tell me! and, as always…**

**PLEASE REVIEW!**


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